


Smoke

by Auber_Gine_Dreams



Series: Wonu is a Necromancer (White Noise Verse) [6]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Anita Blake Vampire Hunter, Blood, Blood Drinking, Blood and Gore, Canon-Typical Violence, Injury, Love Confessions, M/M, Magic, Magical Bond, Mild Kidnapping, Multiple Orgasms, Necromancy, Past Child Abuse, Polyamory, Strangers to Lovers, Supernatural Elements, Vampires, Werewolves, actual kidnapping, mild bloodplay, side jihan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-08
Updated: 2019-06-10
Packaged: 2019-11-15 22:35:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 19
Words: 50,036
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18082220
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Auber_Gine_Dreams/pseuds/Auber_Gine_Dreams
Summary: It's been six months since the Younghee case and Wonwoo’s life has settled into a new kind of normal.Except lycanthropes are shifting unexpectedly, enemy vampires are paying them a visit, and Wonwoo’s magic seems to be going off the rails.There are some things that Wonwoo just can’t put to rest no matter how hard he tries.It’s a bad time to add love into the mix, but what’s a necromancer to do?-Or-“You wonder why I’m so sympathetic to the monsters. The answer is simple. Because I am one.”It's the White Noise Sequel





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is a direct sequel to [White Noise](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16700140/chapters/39167641) so if you don't want to be lost and/or spoiled you should probably start there and come back!
> 
>  
> 
> Strap in as I continue to write literally whatever I want with no self-control whatsoever because I really went for it with this one ;;;;;; I'll be adding tags as we go!  
> I know there are a lot of parts to this AU, but none of the side fics are required reading for this to make sense! As long as you've read White Noise you'll be just fine I just can't stop thinking about or writing this!!  
>  
> 
> I do not own the Anita Blake Universe or Seventeen, but the plot is mine. Please do not repost anywhere.

Wonwoo shivered and shoved his hands deeper in his pockets. His feet crunched through fresh snow as he approached the couple at the edge of the cemetery. The half-moon was shining so brightly off the snow that he could see everything around him like it was daylight.

The worst part about raising the dead was pulling corpses out of the frozen earth.  Well, maybe the worst part about raising the dead was being outside, in the freezing cold where everything took twice as long because everything was frozen solid.

He smiled his professional smile once he was close enough to see their faces. He was animating a twenty year old who was killed in a hit and run on campus a few years ago. His parents missed him and just wanted to talk to him which they did at least twice a year. Wonwoo couldn’t comprehend how much money they had. He exchanged the obligatory _hello_ and _how are you_ before turning his attention to the task at hand.

He let his bag fall from his shoulder into the snow and turned to face Mingyu who honestly could have done this one by himself, but the family requested them both and Wonwoo wasn’t one to turn down clients who were nice enough to describe him as family.

“Seokmin called me earlier. He said there’s a case he needs our help with next week,” Mingyu said as Wonwoo rummaged through his bag for the jar of salt.

He sighed a white cloud. It had been half a year since the Younghee case and Seokmin still wouldn’t let it go. Things were still tense with Seokmin to the point that he refused to do any business if Mingyu couldn’t be there too. If he could remove Wonwoo entirely from the equation he probably would, but no matter how powerful Mingyu was he wasn’t a necromancer. He couldn’t raise murder victims like Wonwoo could, so if Seokmin wanted to keep the Homicide Division’s solve rate high, he’d have to play nice.

“I’ll pass that along to Jun so he doesn’t book me for something.”

Mingyu nodded as he took the salt from Wonwoo. Seokmin thought that Wonwoo was lying to him about the Younghee case, that he actually knew who was behind it and just wasn’t telling him.

Seokmin was a good cop. Of course he was right.

Wonwoo had personally killed the werewolf responsible for Younghee’s death, but it was more complicated than just telling the police. Wonwoo was too involved with the preternatural community to risk outside involvement.

It was funny, really. Mingyu knew everything, was actively helping Wonwoo control his metaphysical bond to a vampire, but Seokmin trusted Mingyu like the two of them were old friends. Humans were really something.

Wonwoo rubbed his hands together for a full minute just to get the blood flowing under his skin. His fingers were still freezing, the tips starting to turn a concerning pinkish red.

Shit.

Mingyu tossed him a hot pack. He held it tight and stuck his hand in his coat pocket. The worst part about raising the dead in the winter was how slowly blood seemed to circulate, how it didn’t want to soak into the ground frozen solid under their feet, how he always had to use a little extra power just to get the body to the surface. The hot pack felt like it was burning his skin, but he ignored it until his hand went tingly as the feeling returned. He reluctantly removed his hand from his pocket and pulled a silver knife from his bag. He drug the knife across his palm quickly, hoping his hand would stay warm enough that the blood would still be hot when it hit the ground. Once he made it around the circle he stepped to the center of the grave.

“With my blood, I call you. Rise, Lee Minjoon. Heed my call and rise from your grave.”

Wonwoo poured his power into the earth, but it felt more like hitting steel with his bare hands. After about thirty seconds, the ground finally quivered under his feet and Minjoon rose up, dusting off his shirt before turning to face his parents. He looked alive if you ignored the jagged sutures from neck to collarbone or the way his arm bent a little wrongly when he wrapped his mother in a hug. It wasn’t his best work, but the family was happy, and that was really all that mattered.

Sometimes, Wonwoo could raise someone and he didn’t have to go through the formalities. No orders. No ‘Master’. It was nice. The pros of being a necromancer outweighed the cons (at least when it came to his job).

He turned away to give the family some privacy and stared up at the stars. The cemetery was pretty at night and the snow made everything glow gray white. He tried to not pay attention to the conversation. Sometimes Minjoon would remember things they’d told him from past visits, but sometimes he didn’t. His parents asked Wonwoo before why that was, and he didn’t really know how to answer them.

Honestly, he didn’t know what information was really allowed to go back with them when he laid them to rest again. Mom got a new car. Dad finally quit that job. Were they allowed to keep those tiny scraps of the future when their souls went back to heaven or hell or wherever? He would probably never know.

“I’m going to get my phone out of my car. I’ll be right back,” Mingyu said suddenly, and Wonwoo gave him a quick nod. Mingyu headed across the cemetery and Wonwoo let the murmurs of the family behind him fade into the background. He stretched his power down the thread between him and Seungcheol, more out of boredom than anything. He could feel Seungcheol worrying about something and the instant he felt Wonwoo’s power a flood of warmth passed between them. He could practically hear Seungcheol say something like _‘Did you miss me that much? I always miss you, but don’t worry. I’ll see you later tonight.’_

Sappy.

Seungcheol had been stressed a lot lately but he wouldn’t tell Wonwoo much about it. Jun had been a little more withdrawn too which meant it was some kind of vampire politics that he’d rather stay out of if he could. His thoughts drifted between his two almost boyfriends until a polite cough made him turn around.

“Thank you again, Wonwoo. It’s because of you that I get to see my Minjoon so often,” Mr. Lee said, giving him a hearty slap on the shoulder.

If Wonwoo hadn’t been doing martial arts three times a week he would have fallen over. Mrs. Lee wrapped him in a tight hug which he reluctantly allowed. Wonwoo wasn’t a person who liked to be touched, especially by people he didn’t know, but he tried to be patient with his clients.

They left with a final wave at Minjoon. They didn’t like to stay and see him put back to rest. Wonwoo didn’t understand how they could watch him come out of the ground but not go back into it, but everyone was different, even about raising the dead.

“I’m ready,” Minjoon said quietly, turning away from his parents with a small sigh.

Wonwoo walked forward and placed his hand on Minjoon’s shoulder.

“Lee Minjoon, as the one who woke you I release you. Go back to your resting place.”

The light in his eyes dimmed as the frozen ground reluctantly swallowed him back up. Wonwoo’s power left the body just as his head disappeared from view, and he sighed as he heard a shout from behind him.

Mingyu was flailing his arms and shouting, running as fast as he could toward the grave. He was still too far away for Wonwoo to make out what he was saying, but he felt a strange zip of energy along his spine. He fought back a shiver and waved his arm in the air, hoping that was the answer Mingyu was looking for.

He was 50 yards away when Wonwoo noticed them.

A pack of ghouls was chasing Mingyu, one dangerously close to closing in on him.

They shouldn’t be here.

Ghouls were like zombies but more like the kind in the movies. They were devoid of thought or feeling, ravenous pack creatures that hungered for any flesh they could find. Ghouls weren’t able to rise on holy land, which was why Wonwoo didn’t work in cemeteries that were abandoned, but a pack was here and hell bent on eating his apprentice.

He sighed again and pulled his gun out of his bag.

Wonwoo didn’t go to the cemetery without a gun anymore. It probably wasn’t legal, but he felt that being able to stay alive if things got dangerous outweighed the risk of getting scolded by the police. He waited for Mingyu to get within earshot.

“Get behind me!”

Mingyu almost made it before the ghoul caught him, a vice grip on his leg sending him crashing into the snow. Wonwoo sprinted forward as Mingyu kicked as hard as he could at the ghoul, whose mouth was open as wide as it could go, ready to bite whatever piece of Mingyu it could sink its teeth into. The others were closing in, their screams piercing as they sped toward what was probably a feast for them. Wonwoo stopped just in front of Mingyu and shot the ghoul right between the eyes, black sludge splattering across the snow. He scrambled up and Wonwoo pulled him tightly against his back.

Mingyu was taller and broader than him, but he wasn’t made for fighting. There was a time Wonwoo thought _he_ wasn’t made for fighting either, but waking up in a cold sweat for months to the echoed sound of his arm snapping and Seungcheol’s screams as a knife plunged into his stomach proved him wrong. Wonwoo took a breath as he aimed for the ghoul that was leading the charge. He used to feel sick when he held a gun, but now the cool, isolated place he went in his mind when he took aim was nearly the same as the way his power made him feel. He exhaled and pulled the trigger. Mingyu flinched behind him hard enough to move Wonwoo’s arm, causing his shot to go slightly right and hit the ghoul in the shoulder.

Shit.

Ghouls didn’t feel pain, but Wonwoo supposed they might feel anger as the bullet wound oozed black and the ghoul let out a deafening screech. It charged as fast as it could toward them and Wonwoo fired two more shots before it fell lifeless into the snow.

There were three ghouls left and he had five more bullets. He had to be careful.

One of the ghouls made its way toward the lifeless bodies of its pack mates, teeth sinking into flesh and cracking through bone, black blood dripping from its mouth. Wonwoo felt his stomach heave at the sight. Mingyu made a little gasp behind him, but he couldn’t worry about him yet.

He turned his attention toward the last two ghouls. They charged mindlessly forward, and one of them tripped and hit the snow before letting out one of those ungodly screeches. The remaining ghoul was closing in and Wonwoo fired a shot that ripped through its open mouth. It hit the ground but wasn’t dead, its jaw hanging on by sinew as it crawled forward relentlessly, desperate to get to them. He aimed true and hit the other ghoul in the temple just as it scrambled up from the snow.

He separated from Mingyu and walked toward the ghoul with half a jaw, shooting it in the back of the head.

He had two bullets and one ghoul left.

Maybe they’d be alright after all.

Wonwoo turned to aim at the otherwise occupied ghoul just as it barreled into his side, knocking his gun from his hand as he landed in the soft snow. Mingyu shouted something but he couldn’t hear over the rush of blood in his ears and the ghoul chomping away at the space between them.

He tried to fight back the panic rising in his chest. This wasn’t like before. Even if he was scared, he had training now. He knew how to fight, and so he took a deep breath and kicked the ghoul in the stomach, forcing it away from him just enough that he could scramble for the gun. He turned back toward it just as it lunged for him. It let out a piercing screech as it sunk teeth into his calf.

Wonwoo was sort of dating two vampires. He’d been bitten before, but this was like nothing he’d ever felt. The ghoul was biting over and over, ripping desperately to tear away his flesh, but thankfully his jeans seemed to hinder the process. He screamed, the pain dotting across his vision for a moment before he took a shaky breath and shot it in the shoulder.

The force of the shot ripped the ghoul’s mouth off him and Wonwoo fought the urge to curl in on his leg and protect it. He blinked away tears and shot the ghoul in the head.

Everything was over in a matter of minutes, but it felt like an entire night had gone by. Mingyu rushed toward him, wrapping his arms around his shoulders and pulling him in to a tight hug.

“Are you alright, Wonwoo?”

Wonwoo nodded, or maybe he just imagined that he nodded. The adrenaline left him feeling like he wasn’t quite himself, but he was thankful for the numbness. His leg was really going to hurt once he was aware of it again. He patted Mingyu’s back a few times before pulling him back and moving to stand.

“Call Jihoon. Tell him to bring a flamethrower.”

 

 

 

***

 

 

 

Wonwoo was leaning against Mingyu when Jihoon walked toward them. Mingyu had a few bruises, but thankfully none of the ghouls had done him any harm. Wonwoo would celebrate that small victory later, after he wasn’t in so much pain.

“Rough night?”

Jihoon was smiling. It was 4 in the morning. What an asshole.

He grimaced as he made his way toward Jihoon, and Mingyu followed just behind like he was worried Wonwoo would fall over at any moment.

“I don’t know where they came from, Jihoon. I was going to get my phone out of the car and they just charged me. They came out of nowhere,” Mingyu said in a rush, like he couldn’t get the words out fast enough.

Jihoon nodded, his mouth pulled down in a frown. “It’s hard to say. There aren’t any old cemeteries around here. They either traveled a long way from home, or this cemetery is losing its holiness. I’ll call the church in charge tomorrow and get someone out here to bless the earth.”

Burning ghouls was the only way to be sure they wouldn’t rise again, and Jihoon was arguably an expert at it. It was part of the official execution protocol for vampires. Stake them, cut off the head, burn everything, and scatter the ashes over two separate bodies of water. Some hospitals were kind enough to cremate the corpses after executions, but if they didn’t it fell to Jihoon.

It didn’t take long for him to turn the ghouls into ash. Ten minutes at most. Wonwoo was just glad the bodies didn’t smell like they were cooking. His stomach was still queasy from the ghoul sinking teeth into its own kind and from the steady throbbing in his leg.

“You should get that bite seen to. You’ll be lucky if it doesn’t get infected considering what ghouls eat,” Jihoon said, looking at his leg with a frown.

Wonwoo sighed but nodded. “I’ll go straight to the hospital once we’re done here.”

Mingyu helped him to his car and Jihoon left without saying goodbye. Once he was slumped behind the wheel he checked his phone. There were four missed calls from Seungcheol, two from Jun and one from Joshua, who was the only person with enough sense to leave a voicemail.

He sent a quick text to Jun: _I’ll call you later_.

One to Seungcheol: _I’ll be home soon_.

He listened to Joshua’s voicemail as he started the car, grateful that a layer of ice hadn’t formed on his windshield.

_“Wonwoo, it’s me. I’m sure you’re working but I need to speak to you as soon as possible. Something weird is going on and I’m not sure what to do.”_

Wonwoo sighed. It could never just be one crisis at a time.


	2. Chapter 2

Wonwoo barely got the front door shut before Seungcheol was beside him, slinging an arm around him to help him to the couch.

“What the fuck happened to you? Your leg smells awful,” he said as he laid Wonwoo on the cushions, propping his leg up with a pillow.

Wonwoo rolled his eyes. “Of course it does. A pack of ghouls attacked me and Mingyu. One of them bit me before I could shoot it.”

Seungcheol huffed and set to work pulling off Wonwoo’s shoes before unbuttoning his jeans.

“I could rip them off if you want. It might hurt less than trying to get them down your leg.”

Wonwoo smirked through a throb of pain. “I know how strong you are Seungcheol. You don’t have to rub it in, but if you think it’ll be easier then go for it.”

Seungcheol gave him a wink before tearing the denim, first down one leg and then the other. He peeled the ruined fabric off as gently as he could, but his jeans were caked with blood around the wound. Wonwoo still yelped when he peeled the fabric away from the bite and tossed the ruined jeans to the floor.

It was about as bad as Wonwoo expected.

His calf was swollen and an angry red, heat radiating from the bite all the way up his leg. There were at least three separate bites all close together, stained black and oozing blood. It was already showing signs of infection.

“You should have gone to the hospital, Wonwoo.”

Seungcheol frowned down at him, running a hand over his cheek soothingly. Wonwoo leaned into the touch and sighed.

“You know I don’t like hospitals,” Wonwoo said quietly, “and besides, you can heal me better than a doctor.”

Seungcheol thumbed across his cheek a few more times before leaning back to assess the wound. His eyebrows were pulled down in concern. He got up without speaking and padded down the hall, returning with a few damp cloths, a towel, and some antiseptic. He ran a hand through Wonwoo’s hair.

“Let me clean it. Then we’ll see if I’m better than a doctor.”

Wonwoo nodded, hands tightening in his lap as Seungcheol began to clean gingerly around the wound.

He was being so careful, but a pulse of heat still ran up his leg at every swipe. It was bad.

Seungcheol changed cloths, mouth set in a line as he swiped over the first bite. Wonwoo’s head slammed against the armrest. He screwed his eyes shut and concentrated on breathing. He refused to scream.

“I’m sorry. I know this hurts. I’ve almost got all the dried stuff off,” Seungcheol said.

Wonwoo nodded too fast against the armrest. It was _really_ bad.

He felt a hand against his face and opened his eyes. Seungcheol sighed and traced his jaw.

“Here comes the bad part.”

Wonwoo nodded and grit his teeth. Seungcheol opened the antiseptic and held out his free hand.

“Squeeze as hard as you want, okay?”

Wonwoo held Seungcheol’s hand between his own and took a deep breath.

It was as bad as he knew it would be. His whole leg lit up like a circuit board, and he squeezed Seungcheol’s hand so hard he was sure it would break. He hissed and he whimpered and maybe a few tears left his eyes, but he didn’t scream.

Seungcheol patted his leg with a clean towel when he was done and he looked at the mostly clean wound for a long time before he spoke.

“I think healing you with my energy is going to take too long. It’ll be too infected by then. I’m gonna try something…if you’re okay with it.”

“Will it keep me away from the doctor?”

Seungcheol shrugged. “No guarantees.”

Wonwoo slid his hand up his arm to squeeze his shoulder.

“I trust you, Seungcheol. If it doesn’t work I’ll go to the hospital when I wake up. I promise.”

Seungcheol smiled in that soft way he usually saved for times he thought Wonwoo couldn’t see. It made his heart thud against his ribs.

Wonwoo stayed silent as Seungcheol bit into his wrist, but he did gasp when his blood dripped over the wound. The pain was less almost instantly and his shoulders relaxed against the arm rest. Seungcheol kept his eyes on the wound, saturating it with his blood until he hummed in satisfaction. He looked up to Wonwoo with a grin.

“You should be alright now. They say vampire blood has healing properties, you know. If I’m right this will fix you up in no time at all.”

“I’m not going to turn from this, am I?”

Seungcheol snorted. “I’m afraid not, my dear necromancer. You’ll be growing older by the hour, while I, your gorgeous live-in lover will remain just like this for all eternity.”

Wonwoo groaned, but sat up and gestured for Seungcheol to sit with him. He fell back into Seungcheol’s lap and the vampire ran his fingers through his hair. It was almost enough to make him forget the gentle throb in his leg, and he bit back a yawn as tiredness washed over him. Spending most of his time with two vampires made him used to sneaking in naps throughout the day just so he could stay with them at night, and thanks to his connection to Seungcheol, his powers were more controlled than they’d ever been.

He was almost asleep when Seungcheol spoke.

“I felt your fear, you know. You’re usually better at shielding than that. I called you and when you didn’t answer, I kind of freaked out. Then I felt a little sting in my leg, and I kept calling. I’ve never been more relieved to get a text message in my life. I’m glad that you’re okay and mostly in one piece.”

Wonwoo hummed softly. “This is exactly why I’ve been working with Minghao and Jihoon. I want to be able to defend myself and the people that I care about. I won’t just sit by, no matter what I have to go up against.”

Seungcheol sighed, his hand still running through Wonwoo’s hair.

“Ghouls did this? I’ve never seen one before. Aren’t they more of a problem outside of the city?”

Wonwoo opened his eyes and looked up at him. “Ghouls aren’t able to rise on holy ground. The cemetery must be losing that, or I guess it could be something else.”

“Like what?”

Wonwoo sighed. “Maybe it’s my necromancy. My powers could be affecting the cemeteries. Maybe I called them to me somehow. There’s so much that I just…don’t know. It’s frustrating.”

Seungcheol leaned down and kissed his forehead.

“You’re getting stronger every day,” he murmured against his skin, “You’ve been researching as much as you can, but necromancers are rare. I know you don’t like it but you’re just going to have to learn as you go.”

Wonwoo looped his hands around Seungcheol’s neck and arched up just enough to kiss him. Seungcheol licked into his mouth right away and Wonwoo tightened his hands against his neck at the feeling. Seungcheol always knew exactly how to drive him crazy. His hand wandered down Wonwoo’s chest until he was in the space between his boxers and shirt, rubbing over his slowly warming skin.

Seungcheol broke the kiss to rub their noses together.

“It’s kinda hot that you gunned down a whole pack of rabid zombies. You’re really something, you know that?”

Wonwoo kissed him quickly again before burying his face against Seungcheol’s stomach. Seungcheol kept rubbing soothing circles into his skin and his other hand was back to stroking through his hair.

Seungcheol was always gentle in actions but brash with feelings. It was kind of nice, being treated gently. There was probably something he should say to Seungcheol, like _you’re really something too. I’ve been thinking, and I want to be your boyfriend officially_ , but sleep descended on him before he could think about it anymore.

 

 

 

****

 

 

 

 

Wonwoo woke up to the sun filtering gently through his living room curtains. He sat up and stretched, his back already aching from sleeping on the couch even though it couldn’t have been more than a few hours. His leg was almost completely healed, the redness and heat completely gone, bite marks already starting to fade. It was nice to know Seungcheol really _did_ make him a little harder to kill.

Seungcheol could have just moved him to the bed. He didn’t mind waking up next to him when he was asleep. The first time was the only exception. It was a few weeks after Wonwoo had been discharged from the hospital. He’d had a nightmare and he wasn’t thinking straight and seeing Seungcheol cold and not breathing on the mattress had made his heart beat so hard and fast he thought he might pass out. It was only after he touched him and felt the tiniest bit of warmth across their bond that he felt better.

Seungcheol said he’d dreamed about it, that he saw how scared Wonwoo had looked and that he didn’t want him to go through it again. But Seungcheol never stopped him from climbing into bed next to him, and it never happened again.

Wonwoo went about his morning, making some breakfast and doing some laundry. He forgot all about the call from Joshua until he had put all his clothes away and was half way through a cup of coffee. He sighed as he listened to the voicemail again. It was just after 2, so Joshua was probably at work.

He picked up on the second ring.

_‘Wonwoo, listen. Something really weird is going on. The Coalition is so full right now I might have to turn people away.’_

If Wonwoo hadn’t been out at the cemetery last night he wouldn’t have understood what Joshua was saying, but he’d seen the moon gleaming over the snow.

“The moon won’t be full for a few more weeks. Why are so many people up there right now?”

Joshua sighed into the receiver. _‘That’s what I want to know. Lycanthropes all over the city have been shifting out of nowhere, but the wolves seem to be the most affected. Even Chan shifted yesterday.’_

“Is Jeonghan okay? What about you?”

_‘I’ve been fine so far and Jeonghan is too, but I’m worried about him. The wolves that are here seem really restless.’_

Wonwoo drained the rest of his coffee.

“I’m going to see Jun tonight anyway, so I’ll see if he knows anything about this. Maybe it’s happened before.”

_‘There aren’t a lot of things that can cause a lycanthrope to shift outside of the full moon. Alphas and high ranking pack members are able to shift at will, but no one that’s come to the Coalition has been either of those. And they definitely aren’t shifting because they want to. Some people have been at work, and now they’ll be lucky if they don’t get fired. It’s a little scary, to be honest.’_

“I’ll let you know right away if I find out anything. If there’s anything else I can do to help, just call me.”

_‘Thanks Wonwoo. I’ll keep you updated, but I have to go. More people are coming in and I have to figure out where I can put them.’_

He hung up after a quick goodbye and set his phone next to him. The ghouls really could have been the result of his necromancy, but he didn’t have power over the living. Wonwoo didn’t know a lot about lycanthropes, but he knew that if Joshua was scared something serious was going on.

He decided to drink one more cup of coffee, take a long hot shower, and by the time he got to Jun’s apartment it would probably be dark. It was the only nice thing about winter. He used to hate the lack of sun, but now it made his life a lot easier.

Jun had a lot of knowledge from living for so long. If he knew about necromancers, surely he would know about this.


	3. Chapter 3

Wonwoo walked into Jun’s apartment just as the sun dipped below the horizon. The first time he’d come without Seungcheol everyone had tripped over themselves to get him to the right place. It made Wonwoo feel even more awkward, and by the time he’d made it to Jun’s door he had to force himself to walk inside instead of turning around and sprinting back to his car from embarrassment. Apparently, being the sort of boyfriend of the Master of the City made him important. Who would have guessed.

In the months they’d known each other, Jun had made some serious changes to his apartment. The living room actually looked like someone lived in it, for one. He had a black leather sofa with a fleece blanket draped across the back. There was a working television, a coffee table, and a slowly growing collection of movies and TV shows on DVD. There was so much Jun had never seen, and Wonwoo felt it was his duty to educate his lover on modern classics and vampire media.

Wonwoo left his shoes at the door and made his way into the kitchen to brew some coffee, which was another thing Jun had added at his insistence. He couldn’t stay up most of the night without caffeine, not a chance. Once the pot was done brewing he poured a cup and sat on the couch. He was half way through the cup when Jun finally padded out of the hallway.

Every time he saw Junhui, it was like the first time all over again. Jun’s hair was a little messy from sleep, and he yawned with a hand over his mouth before he turned to regard Wonwoo. He was dressed in a black silk pajama set, the sleeves long enough that only his fingers were visible. He smiled a little shyly before sitting on the other side of the couch. Wonwoo’s heart clenched tight in his chest. Jun was beautiful like that. He was always beautiful, but Wonwoo loved seeing him without the weight of being Master of the City on his shoulders.

“I wish I could wake up to the sound of your lovely heartbeat more often, _xiao yòu_. I was a little worried when I didn’t hear from you last night, but Seungcheol informed me of what happened. Is your leg better?”

Wonwoo nodded. “It’s almost totally healed. It’s a good thing doctors don’t know about the things vampire blood can do or you’d all be in big trouble.”

“That is exactly why vampires have not associated with humans for most of our existence. There are many things about us that scientists and doctors would love to experiment with.”

Wonwoo shuddered. His mind readily supplied him with the image of his parents’ office, stark white with a vampire chained to a wall in the back, blood dripping slowly into a bucket on the floor. It made him sick.

Jun moved closer until he could curl into Wonwoo’s side and he put his arm around the vampire’s waist.

“It seems like ages since I’ve been able to spend time with you. Your hair has gotten longer.” Jun smiled and ran his hand through it. “It suits you.”

Wonwoo’s face heated a bit at the praise. Jun was always showering him with compliments. In spite of their frequency they had yet to lose their effect. His hair was long enough that it curled in front of his eyes, and it was messy enough to border on unruly. Seungcheol really liked it, so he was trying to hold off until he couldn’t take it anymore to cut it. If Jun liked it too, he might as well put the thought out of his mind.

“I know this isn’t supposed to be about work, but I’ve got something I need to talk to you about.” Wonwoo sighed as he rubbed Jun’s side. He had to fight the urge to slip under the silk to feel his skin.

Jun hummed. “As much as I want to ignore everything and focus only on you, I’m afraid I also have some business to discuss with you. Tell me what’s on your mind, _xiao yòu_.”

Wonwoo took a breath and shifted so he could look into Jun’s eyes better.

“Joshua called me last night. Apparently lycanthropes all over the city are shifting and no one knows why.”

Jun frowned. “The moon is just half full. They should not be capable of shifting.”

“That’s what Joshua said too. He told me it seems like the wolves are being affected more than any other group and that they seem to be really uneasy. He’s pretty freaked out about the whole thing. I told him I’d ask you if there was anything you could do to help.”

“While I do have the ability to call wolves, I am not sure what could be causing this. There are vampires that are able to force the change, but if someone that powerful was in the city I would know about it. I have heard that when lycanthropes are sick, their bodies will shift to heal faster. Perhaps there is some kind of sickness going around?”

Wonwoo shrugged. It seemed more serious than just lycanthropes catching some weird strain of the flu, but he was even more clueless than Jun. His mind finally registered all of Jun’s words, and his hand stilled against his waist.

“What do you mean by call wolves?”

Jun looked at him with an expression that made Wonwoo almost uneasy.

“Sometimes I forget that even though you are a necromancer, your preternatural knowledge is limited. Vampires and lycanthropes have existed since the beginning of time. In order to keep each other safe, we have always stuck together. Many vampires have the ability to bind themselves to and control a certain type of lycanthrope. Well, control to an extent. Seungcheol and I are both able to call wolves, and if either of us wanted to we could permanently tie ourselves to a wolf. Having an animal to call can create a strong bond between vampire and lycanthrope communities, but also brings more power to the bound pair.”

Wonwoo nodded. It made sense.

“So it’s kind of like a human servant?”

Jun smiled. “ _Xiao yòu_ , you are exactly right. The animal to call becomes immortal, and the vampire has another set of eyes for daylight hours. The only difference is that anyone can become a human servant, but only certain lycanthropes can become an animal to call.”

So, Seungcheol could call wolves too. That certainly explained how he knew so much about the pack and their inner workings. Wonwoo wondered if that had anything to do with the history between him and Jeonghan, but he put the thought out of his mind until he could actually muse over it.

“So what makes a lycanthrope able to be an animal to call?”

Jun shrugged.

“No one really knows. Something between the two just has to click. Power level, compatibility…something has to come together just right for it to work. It is a very mysterious process, much like all magic.”

Wonwoo nodded and held back a sigh. He hated how much of magic was just luck, or mystery or whatever. There was so little concreteness, so little repeatability. It was equally fascinating and frustrating.

“So what do you need to talk to me about?” he asked, resuming the slow slide of his hand on Jun’s waist.

Jun let his head fall against Wonwoo’s shoulder and sighed.

“I had wanted to keep you out of this if I could _xiao yòu_ , but there is a meeting in two nights that I need you to attend.”

“Is this why you and Seungcheol have been so stressed out?”

Jun nodded against him.

“We have a visit from the Master of the City to the east. He is an ally to JR, and it is a guarantee that the purpose of this meeting is to make me suffer as much as possible. Some things might happen that you will not like, but I need you to trust me. I will do everything I can to make sure things work out favorably for us.”

“Is this considered a job or a date?” Wonwoo let his hand slip under Jun’s shirt hoping to ease the growing dread in his chest. Vampire politics made him nervous. He didn’t know what to do, what he was _allowed_ to do, but he knew he was a powerful piece of Jun’s arsenal. Being present was also part of keeping the people he cared about safe. He needed to get used to it.

Jun’s skin was cool against his hand and he couldn’t suppress a shiver. Touching Jun was always dangerous. It was hard to stop once he started.

“ _This_ ,” Jun murmured as slid his hand up Wonwoo’s thigh, “is a date. The meeting is a job, and you will be compensated of course. You might get some unexpected calls too. Masters can be rather particular, and we as hosts must do our best to give our guests whatever they ask for.”

Great. Wonwoo would have to let Vernon know. One good thing to come out of the Younghee incident was that Vernon basically gave him free reign at work. He could come and go as he needed. He’d still double book Wonwoo later to make up for it, but it didn’t really surprise him. Almost killing one of his employees only put a slight damper on how much he loved making money.

His mind went blank as Jun gripped his thighs and pulled him down the couch until he was flat on his back. He straddled Wonwoo with too much grace and leaned down until he could bury his face against his neck.

“Enough business, _xiao yòu_. I can’t resist you anymore, not when you smell so good,” he breathed out against Wonwoo’s skin, “I want to taste you, then we can finish that delightful show from last time.”

Wonwoo’s breath hitched as Jun’s fangs grazed the sensitive skin of his neck. He didn’t usually let either of his lovers bite him in visible places, but it was cold enough that no one would bat an eye if he wore a turtleneck to the office. He carded his hands through Jun’s hair.

“I thought you’d find it interesting to see how humans still perceive vampires, and the synthetic blood is a cool idea. What are you waiting for? Get on with it, _Master_.”

Jun shuddered against him and nipped his neck teasingly. Wonwoo groaned when Jun rolled their hips together, his dick twitching in interest. Wonwoo found out about _that_ particular word the first time they had sex. He used it sparingly, just so he could watch Jun bodily react to it. He tilted his head to give Jun more access, and after kissing his pulse point he finally bit down.

The pleasure was still a slow, easy thing. Wonwoo sighed and moved his hands under Jun’s shirt so he could feel his skin flush with warmth in time with his pounding heart. It was kind of amazing feeling Jun come alive under his hands, hearing him moan when Wonwoo shifted and their erections brushed together. He drank long enough that Wonwoo worried he’d get dizzy, but Jun pulled away with a final lick to his neck. When he looked down at Wonwoo his lips were stained red. Jun couldn’t hide his ragged breathing.

Wonwoo grinned before pulling him down by the collar of his shirt, connecting their lips in a kiss slick with blood. Over the months he’d been with Jun and Seungcheol, tasting his own blood had become kind of a turn on, but he’d never tell either of them that out loud.

He licked across Jun’s bottom lip and the vampire opened up for him right away. Wonwoo took his time exploring Jun’s mouth like it was the first time, until Jun let out a frustrated growl and ground their hips together.

“If you keep this up, I don’t think we’ll be finishing the show tonight,” Jun panted between them.

Wonwoo gave Jun one last kiss before sitting up enough to prop his back against the armrest. He pulled at Jun until he was settled against his chest. Both of them did a phenomenal job ignoring Wonwoo’s erection pressing against him.

“You’re just really…hard to resist,” he mumbled against Jun’s neck, and Jun squirmed against him, ticklish, “We can always finish what we started later. There are only a few episodes left anyway.”

Jun settled back against him and turned on the television.

“The idea that different blood types have a different taste is quite interesting. To me, lycanthropes and magical ability are the only things that give blood any real flavor. Vampire blood being a drug is quite something too.” Jun looked back to him with a devilish smirk as the opening theme started. “Would you like a taste, _xiao yòu_? Are you curious to see what it will do to you?”

Seungcheol’s blood had completely healed a nasty bite in under a day. He couldn’t imagine what ingesting a vampire’s blood would do. Maybe it _would_ make him high. Wonwoo wasn’t familiar with the process of becoming a vampire. None of them really talked about it, which was fine, but it also made him wary of putting any amount of vampire blood in his body. He wasn’t sure if being immortal was something that he wanted, at least not yet.

Wonwoo let out a contented sigh and pulled Jun tighter against him, let himself enjoy Jun’s warmth and presence. Sometimes Wonwoo stopped over more than once a week, but between the two of them their schedules were always hectic. A small but insistent part of him wished that he could spend more time with Jun, could wake up to his beautiful face and play video games with him because for someone so old he was surprisingly good at them.

Wonwoo made it through the season finale before he couldn’t hold back his yawns anymore. Jun slid down the couch and pulled Wonwoo with him until they were stretched out face to face.

“So, about finishing what we started.” Jun trailed a finger down Wonwoo’s body, slipped teasingly inside the waistband of his pants. “I think I can entertain you enough to keep you awake, _xiao yòu_.”

Wonwoo’s body responded right away. It was like Jun could flip a switch inside of him, and with just a heated look or light touch make him desperate with desire. His hand moved between their bodies to palm Jun through the silk of his pajama pants and smirked when Jun sucked in a breath.

“If you don’t get inside of me right now I’m going to go home.” Wonwoo couldn’t keep the strain out of his voice.

Jun flashed his fangs, still faintly pink.

“You know I can’t say no when you ask like that.” He raked his eyes down Wonwoo’s body and licked across his bottom lip. “I wonder how many times I can make you come before I do. Three? Four? I have quite a lot of self-control, you know.”

Wonwoo shuddered and stood up, grabbing Jun by the wrist and tugging him down the hall toward the bedroom. His personal best was twice, but Jun was an expert at pushing his buttons.

He’d come as many times as Jun wanted. He couldn’t disappoint the Master, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me? Talking about True Blood? It's more likely than you think :D Things are moving right along!! I hope you're enjoying the story so far<333


	4. Chapter 4

Wonwoo woke up to Minghao shaking him gently by the shoulder.

“Wonwoo, you have a job tonight. You’ve got to wake up if you want to be ready on time.”

Wonwoo groaned, turning away from Minghao’s voice and burying his face in Jun’s back. He’d fallen asleep on his side so that’s how he’d stay until dark. He was cool against Wonwoo’s bed warmed skin, and the temperature difference helped to wake him up. He yawned and rolled back over to face Minghao.

“How did you know I was working tonight?” he croaked out, voice embarrassingly scratchy.

Minghao gave him a warm but professional smile.

“I have to know your schedule to know when you can attend events with Junhui. Of course I know you’re working tonight. It’s probably later than you think, so go get ready.”

Minghao didn’t have to be as nice to him as he was. Part of it was their martial arts sessions, but Wonwoo genuinely liked Minghao and he had a feeling it was mutual. He slipped out of bed and headed for the shower while Minghao went to do something work related, probably.

He stayed under the hot spray way longer than necessary, letting his muscles loosen up. He’d overdone it last night, but he couldn’t find the will to care. Mingyu was taking the lead tonight and as long as he covered up his neck it would be business as usual for all his clients knew.

He helped himself to Jun’s closet, borrowing a pair of black jeans and a black turtleneck that felt so soft under his hands he was sure it cost two months’ rent. Minghao had made him coffee in a little container he could take with him, and if he was more affectionate he’d probably hug him for it.

“You’re too good for Jun, Minghao,” he said instead.

Minghao scoffed and opened his laptop, clicking away at the keys for a moment before looking up at him, a hint of a smile at his lips.

“This is nothing compared to what he’s done for me. You make Junhui very happy, and I consider you my friend, too.” He waved a hand vaguely at the direction of the door. “You should go. If you don’t leave now, you’ll be late.”

Wonwoo grabbed his coat and left Jun’s apartment with a little wave goodbye.

Wonwoo was twenty three years old, and for the first time in his life, he had more friends than he could count on one hand.

It was kind of nice.

 

 

 

****

 

 

 

He made it to the graveyard half an hour early. The snow had already started to melt, tire tracks and footprints turning it to gray slush, but the wind made the pleasant winter night bitterly cold.  He shoved his hands in his pockets as soon as he pulled his bag out of the back seat of his car. The moon was shining bright just above the trees and he sighed as he walked toward the grave.

Wonwoo usually liked to get to the graveyard early. It gave him time to get his supplies in order, to familiarize himself with the person in the ground, and to stretch the cool tendrils of his power. When Mingyu was taking the lead, he doubled the prep time. Mingyu was getting better with every client, but Wonwoo couldn’t shake the need to be protective of him. Mingyu was his student (and his friend) and he wouldn’t let anything bad happen to him. Plus, how could Wonwoo ever call himself a necromancer if he didn’t have a successful apprentice?

A local historical society wanted to raise a former member to ask him where he’d put some of their oldest records. Everything about it was simple and straight forward, which was why it was perfect for Mingyu. Wonwoo had just arranged all the supplies in order at the edge of the grave when he heard footsteps. Mingyu gave him a smile as he approached, bundled in a heavy wool coat and gloves.

“God, it’s freezing,” he mumbled as he came to a stop next to Wonwoo, “Maybe we should talk to Vernon. We could work double in the summer if we could just close in the winter.”

Wonwoo shrugged. “The holidays make people nostalgic. We do a lot of business this time of the year. You couldn’t convince Vernon if you tried.”

Mingyu pouted but relented. He walked a circle around the grave, careful not to step on top of it. He surveyed the supplies Wonwoo had laid out for him. He stared at the name on the headstone for a few minutes. Every animator had their own process, their own routine, and Wonwoo let Mingyu figure out what worked best for him.

“Oh,” Mingyu said suddenly, jolting Wonwoo out of his thoughts, “Seokmin told me he wanted to meet with you in a few days. I think he gave the details to Seungkwan. I can’t believe he’s still acting this way toward you. It’s getting a little ridiculous.”

Wonwoo couldn’t agree more, actually. He sighed, hand coming up automatically to rub the bite hidden away under his turtleneck. He couldn’t imagine what Seokmin would think if he knew about Seungcheol, if he knew about Jun.

Mingyu put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed him gently just as the men from the historical society walked up the hill.

Wonwoo put on his professional smile and bowed to the men as they approached.

“Good to see you, Mister Jeon,” the president, a graying man named Kim Youngil said, “And who is this?”

Wonwoo turned to Mingyu as he bowed hastily. “This is my apprentice, Kim Mingyu. He’s going to be raising Mister Lee tonight. I’m just here for moral support.”

The man smiled at Mingyu. “Well gentlemen, whenever you’re ready.”

Mingyu took a deep breath and Wonwoo gave him a small smile. Mingyu got nervous before every client even though he didn’t need to be. He was already capable of raising the dead without an animal sacrifice (thank god, because Wonwoo was sure Mingyu wouldn’t be able to kill a chicken if his life depended on it), and if anything did go awry, Wonwoo was right there to fix things before the clients even knew something wasn’t right.

Mingyu picked up the salt and walked a circle around the grave. At first, Wonwoo was worried that Mingyu’s left handedness would somehow affect the ritual process of raising the dead, but so far it hadn’t done much. It kind of made teaching Mingyu easier. Wonwoo just had to stand in front of him, and Mingyu followed along like Wonwoo was a reflection in a mirror.  He set the salt aside when he was done and picked up the silver knife that was next in the line. It was smaller than the one Wonwoo used, with two snakes twining up the handle to form the hilt. He slid it across his right palm and the hiss of pain he let out was masked by a gust of wind. He walked around the circle again, letting his blood join the salt in a perfect ring. He stood in front of the headstone.

“With my blood I call you. Rise, Lee Jeongsoo.”

Every time Mingyu worked, the hair on the back of Wonwoo’s neck stood straight up and he had to force his own power down as it thrummed under his skin, like Mingyu’s power was calling out and he had to answer.

The ground rumbled beneath them, and like the magic it was, a man rose up from the earth. He was a bit green faced, his hair missing in a few places. His eyes were opaque and milky, but his voice was clear.

“Master.”

Mingyu cleared his throat.

“Tell me your name.”

The man’s mouth opened and shut a few times before he answered.

“Lee Jeongsoo, Master.”

Mingyu turned to face the men who were regarding their former member with a mix of fondness and mild repulsion.

“You can ask him whatever you like.”

Wonwoo sighed when Mingyu turned toward him. His zombies weren’t as perfect as Wonwoo’s yet, but he was already more improved than the first time.

The men approached and started their questions, and Wonwoo walked close enough to pat Mingyu’s shoulder.

“Well done. Soon enough you won’t even need me here at all.”

Mingyu beamed, bouncing on his toes a little at the praise. He looked down at his feet before turning soft eyes to Wonwoo.

“It’s all because of you, Wonwoo. You’re so patient with me even when I mess up. You’re the best teacher I’ve ever had.”

Wonwoo felt that little pang of fondness he sometimes felt toward Mingyu. In some ways, Mingyu reminded him of himself: a kid with a lot of magical ability and no one to show him how to use it. He treated Mingyu the way his own teacher had treated him, the way he’d wished his parents would have treated him, and he’d blossomed because of it. He gave Mingyu one more squeeze before turning away to face the hill.

Wonwoo didn’t usually work in this cemetery. It was a little older, the graves more worn by time. It was further away from the city. But the graves were more ornate, more angels and mausoleums and statues. The air was more still and the souls seemed much further away, like he’d have to stretch his power to the limits to bring some of these people back. It was calming but also thrilling.

The graying president turned toward Mingyu and smiled.

“You’ve been a tremendous help, Mister Kim. We’ve got exactly what we needed.”

Mingyu smiled and bowed to the men. “I’m glad I could help.”

“We’ll be on our way now, if that’s alright with you. Mister Jeon, it was a pleasure to see you again.”

Wonwoo bowed to the men as they headed down the hill and he turned his attention to Mingyu, who cleared his throat before finishing the ritual.

“Lee Jeongsoo, as the one who brought you I release you. Rest now.”

His body shuddered, and the light left his eyes like blowing out a candle. It was a little harsher than when Wonwoo did it, but that too would get better with practice.

Mingyu turned away from the zombie to look at Wonwoo, and as a sudden breeze whooshed through the empty tree branches Wonwoo shivered.

Something was wrong.

The body was still there. The soul was still inside, fluttering like it was trapped. Wonwoo moved to stand next to Mingyu.

“Let me,” he said before Mingyu could do anything. He looked like he might cry, frustration clear on his face.

Wonwoo took a small knife out of his pocket and slid it across his hand just enough to draw blood. He let his palm fill up before sprinkling the blood across the zombie’s blank face.

“Lee Jeongsoo, go back to your resting place.”

Wonwoo felt the shudder as his power wrapped around the soul, but still it remained.

Wonwoo felt hot then cold, his spine prickling with fear.

“What is going _on_?” his voice was louder than he meant for it to be, and Mingyu turned fearful eyes to him.

“Why won’t he go back in the ground?” Mingyu asked, voice rising to shrillness at the end.

Wonwoo shook his head. He had no idea what was going on.

This had never happened to him before. First the ghouls and now this. Something very strange was happening. He took a few deep breaths and tried to think.

“Okay. Let’s try this,” he said, reaching for Mingyu’s hand, “We’ll both put him back. Just do what you normally do, and I’ll match you, alright?”

Mingyu nodded.

Wonwoo had never tried anything like this before, but if anyone could do it, it was them. He was sure of it.

“Lee Jeongsoo, I command you. As the one who made you. Rest now.” Mingyu’s voice was loud in the still air.

Wonwoo pushed his power into their joined hands and he felt the way Mingyu’s power followed. He reached their combined power like a hand into the body. He felt the way it gripped the soul, and the flutters thrilled up his spine. He felt how he could take it if he wanted to, the necromancy whispering like a voice in his head that _any_ soul could be his if he wanted.

He pulled hard and the soul followed the power. Mingyu gasped next to him and that was enough for the soul to float away back to wherever it went off to. The ground shuddered beneath them as the body sunk back into the earth.

When the ground settled back to smoothness, Wonwoo dropped Mingyu’s hand. He couldn’t stop shivering.

Wonwoo was slowly getting used to strange things happening to him, but his own power failing him…that was something he couldn’t understand. And the way his necromancy had flown through him, clutching the soul of some old man like a threat, like a sweet promise that he could have anything if he wanted it enough.

Something very, very strange was happening, and he had no one to turn to.


	5. Chapter 5

Wonwoo had always been quiet. It was partly from growing up with the ability to raise the dead and partly from having rich, conservative parents. Surprisingly, money couldn’t buy friendship when you also had to hide magical ability. So, Wonwoo learned to stay quiet, to speak only when spoken to. He was used to not having the words for a given situation, but when he walked into Jun’s office it was like his mind was wiped clean of any concept of language.

Wen Junhui was dressed in black slacks and a black button down. Everything about him was as beautiful as always, but the part that shocked Wonwoo into silence was his hair, dyed an ashy gray. He was stunning.

It took Wonwoo a good three minutes of staring before he remembered how to speak at all.

“You can dye your hair?”

Jun laughed so loudly he had to cover his mouth to muffle it. “Did you think the color it was before was natural? _Xiao yòu_ , I was born with black hair. For some reason our hair still grows and can be colored, though everything else about us is the same as when we were turned.”

Wonwoo’s lips curled up and he fought to keep his laugh inside. The idea of vampires having to go for regular haircuts was absurdly hilarious. He looked down at his shoes before sighing and getting to business.

“So, where is the meeting?”

Jun looked away for a moment and Wonwoo fought the urge to comfort him.

“Two floors down is the room where I hold meetings. Minghao and Seungcheol should already be there, so if you are ready, my necromancer, let us go and get this over with.”

Wonwoo took his hand when Jun walked past him, and he kept their fingers linked the entire elevator ride down to the meeting room.

The other vampires weren’t there yet, thank god, so Wonwoo kept his hold on Jun’s hand. The room reminded him of JR’s house but not quite as extravagant. There was a line of chairs at the front of the room with an obviously larger one in the center. There was a line of cushions of varying colors and sizes a few feet in front of them for guests to sit (or kneel). There was also a large cherry table and chairs closer to the entrance. There were levels to the meetings Jun held here, and Wonwoo had a sinking feeling they were going to be looking down at these visitors from on high.

Seungcheol walked toward them and wrapped his arm around Wonwoo’s waist, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek before turning to address Jun.

“Master, they should be arriving soon.”

Sometimes when Wonwoo was between his two lovers, he felt an awful tension spread like poison through his veins. He knew they were fine with their arrangement, and Wonwoo wanted to be with them both, but he couldn’t help the part of him that was conditioned since childhood for monogamy. He was afraid they would hate each other, or maybe hate him, but Jun just nodded and Seungcheol smirked and it was perfectly, completely normal.

Minghao gave Wonwoo a soft smile before pulling Jun toward the seat in the center, pushing him into it with a string of what sounded a lot like Mandarin curses. Jun pouted and Minghao rolled his eyes. He beckoned to Seungcheol, who gave Wonwoo’s waist one last squeeze before going to his appointed seat.

When Minghao approached Wonwoo, he already knew what was coming.

“This is very much like last time, Wonwoo. Don’t speak unless you’re spoken to. Don’t contradict the Master in any way. Don’t even think about your power unless you are expressly asked to do so. There is a very real possibility that things could end violently tonight. Don’t forget what I’ve taught you.”

Wonwoo nodded and Minghao squeezed his shoulder before directing him to sit in the chair next to Seungcheol. They were both on Jun’s left and Minghao was on his right, and they would probably look imposing once Jun stopped pouting.

Jun took a deep breath, and as he exhaled his earlier demeanor was gone. He was Wen Junhui, Master of the City. It was kind of amazing how he took the mantle of power so gracefully on his shoulders. They locked eyes for a moment, and Wonwoo gave him a small smile before the door to the room opened.

When Wonwoo thought about vampires, he thought about people like Jun. People who were so unbelievably beautiful that to lose them from the world would be a tragedy. He watched a procession of absolutely stunning men enter the room, one after the next. The first man was tall, definitely taller than Wonwoo and Jun. He was dressed simply in a black suit with a white button down. His height made his presence imposing, and Wonwoo fought to keep his eyes on the man as he came to stand at the cushion in front of him with a curt nod.

The next man was being pushed into the room by a vampire with eyes so striking Wonwoo could only look once before he had to glance away.

“Taeil, we talked about this. You _have_ to be here,” the man pushing whispered harshly, and it wasn’t until the man in front of Wonwoo turned to give him a warm smile that the one called Taeil walked forward of his own will.

Taeil stood in front of Minghao. He was small, but something about him felt wiser than his years. He was wearing a hoodie that covered his hands and black jeans. Obviously, no one had given him the memo about vampire meetings and dress codes. Or maybe, he was so powerful that no one could tell him what to do. Taeil glanced at their faces and the second his eyes locked with Wonwoo it felt like time stopped. His whole body thrummed with energy and Taeil’s pupils went wide. He looked like he wanted to speak, but he glanced at the ground and the moment was gone.

The other man stood in front of Seungcheol, and something like electricity hummed across their bond. Wonwoo spared a quick glance at Seungcheol, who was sitting ramrod straight in his chair. The man in front of him looked like he wanted to eat Seungcheol alive in every possible way. It was unnerving.

Wonwoo knew right away from the shift of energy in the room when the Mater of the City entered. He walked in last, his hair red like blood. If it had been wet Wonwoo would have thought he’d dunked his head in it. He was slender, and while he was shorter than Wonwoo, his presence more than made up for it. The Master of the City was breathtakingly beautiful, dressed in a flowing white shirt with ruffled sleeves that fell just to his knuckles and tight black pants. Wonwoo had never seen anyone as gorgeous as him. Even Jun looked almost ordinary in comparison. His eyes were cold as he scanned each of their faces, and it felt like he lingered on Wonwoo for a long time before turning his attention to Jun.

“Wen Junhui. Your reputation is quite misleading,” the Master said with a smile that dripped venom. “You’re much more hospitable than I was led to believe.”

Jun’s smile was courteous but the icy undertone was undeniable.

“Lee Taeyong. How are things to the east?”

Taeyong walked toward the table at the back of the room, grabbing a chair and turning it to face Jun. He sat gracefully, crossed his legs and let his hands fold in front of him.

“We’ll get to that, Junhui. But first I want to talk to you about an _exciting_ little rumor I heard.”

“A rumor, you say?”

Taeyong looked straight at Wonwoo, his eyes dark and predatory like he couldn’t wait to sink his fangs into his skin. A shiver of panic shot through him and he fought to tamp it down.

“I heard you have a necromancer in your services. I simply _had_ to stop in to see what all the fuss was about. JR tried to get me to be angry with you, but we both know I don’t care about your silly little feud.” He waved his hand like he was brushing it away, eyes still fixed on Wonwoo. “That’s your business. But a necromancer is everyone’s business, don’t you agree?”

Jun drummed his fingers on his knees for just a moment, but Wonwoo could see the tension in the movement.

“My necromancer is _my_ business, Taeyong. But I can certainly _make_ it your business if you would prefer.”

The man in front of Seungcheol took a step closer to Jun, his eyes burning with barely contained fury, lips curled up just enough to show fangs, and just as Minghao and Seungcheol shifted in their seats Taeyong held up a hand.

“Yuta, that’s enough.”

The man stopped instantly, his face smoothing back to blankness.

“My apologies, Junhui. Yuta is my Second, and he’s quite protective of me. He was an assassin once, you know. Centuries of existence make the things we learned in the past that much harder to give up, as I’m sure you know.”

The implication wasn’t lost on Jun, whose eyes went steely. It wasn’t lost on Wonwoo either. He felt a tiny bubble of anger rise in his chest, but he took a deep breath to keep it from spreading any further.

Wonwoo looked at Yuta, really looked at him. He was dressed in the same plain suit as the man in front of him, but every inch of the vampire screamed danger. He definitely didn’t want to get on Yuta’s bad side.

“So now you have seen my necromancer,” Jun said, his tone clipped. “Let’s cut all this nonsense and get to the real reason you came here. You are too young to be so hung up on formalities, Taeyong.”

Taeyong smiled again and it was feral.

“Oh, Junhui. I haven’t even introduced myself to him. You have to let me do that, at least.”

Taeyong poured himself out of the chair. That was the only way to describe the way he moved, like he was more liquid than solid. He walked toward Wonwoo slowly, and with every step a weird feeling prickled through his chest. When he got close enough that the man in front of Wonwoo had to step aside, he relaxed his shoulders. The Taeyong in front of him was smiling so softly it was like the Master from before was just a dream.

So he was more like Junhui than JR. Wonwoo could handle that.

“Hi. I’m Lee Taeyong, Master of the City. And you are?”

Wonwoo felt every pair of eyes turn to him, and he would have been embarrassed if not for the way his world narrowed down to Taeyong’s warm, dark eyes and sweet smile.

“Jeon Wonwoo.”

Taeyong stepped closer, and he felt Seungcheol’s panic shoot through him. He tried to send reassurance back to him but his head felt foggy, like he’d had one too many drinks and was trying to figure out which button to hit on his phone to dial home.

“You’re much prettier than I imagined you’d be, Wonwoo. How is it that you ended up in a place like this, working for vampires?”

Wonwoo felt a jolt of panic, but it was gone in a haze of fog like it had never been there at all.

“It’s kind of a long story. I don’t think there’s time to explain it all.”

Taeyong smiled wider, and even his teeth were cute. Wonwoo felt a little heat in his cheeks and he mentally shook himself. What was he _doing_? Taeyong stepped forward again and the two were almost touching.

“That’s okay, Wonwoo. I know the basics already. Tell me, are you marked?”

Wonwoo’s hand shot up to the side of his neck where Jun had fed from him the other day. It wasn’t visible over the collar of his dress shirt, but maybe vampires could just sense that kind of thing. Taeyong grinned, and it seemed almost predatory again.

“Oh I don’t mean like that.”

His hands were on Wonwoo’s shoulders, their faces inches apart. He searched Wonwoo’s eyes and let his gaze travel down his neck, stopping to stare at the way his heart hammered blood through his veins. Wonwoo’s power uncurled just a bit in his chest, and the cool mist of it pushed back at the fog in his mind. He used it to reach out to Seungcheol, felt the familiar warmth ease into him, and then it clicked.

Oh.

Taeyong was in his head.

That made sense.

He used a little more power and forced Taeyong’s control back just a bit more. The vampire looked into his eyes with amusement.

“You aren’t marked, but you’re certainly not defenseless. You’re quite interesting, Jeon Wonwoo.”

His tongue darted out to trace his bottom lip, and Wonwoo hated that the swoop he felt in his gut wasn’t from vampire mind tricks.

Taeyong stepped back enough to regard the other vampires in the room and Wonwoo felt like he could finally breathe. He glanced at Seungcheol, who was doing his best not to look as worried as Wonwoo could feel he was. Jun, on the other hand, was absolutely furious. The only thing keeping him in his seat was Minghao’s hand on his shoulder.

“You do not get to touch what is mine, Taeyong. You aren’t even worthy to look at him.” Jun’s voice was hard, seconds from snapping into fury.

Taeyong sneered. “Junhui, he’s certainly not _yours_. Not like how Minghao is yours, or how Johnny is mine, or even how Seungcheol is Wonwoo’s. He is the freest person in this room.”

The words were like an electric shock.

Wonwoo felt the blood drain from his face. No one knew about him and Seungcheol. _No one_. Taeyong shouldn’t have that information.

The answer flitted through his mind like Seungcheol whispered it. Taeyong knew because he’d been in Wonwoo’s head. He’d wanted information, and he’d used the only person in the room he could to get it.

Taeyong returned to his chair, sitting just as he was before, but this time with a hand running through his hair. Johnny stood in front of Wonwoo again and spared him a pitying glace. At least one person in the bunch was nice.

“The leopards are restless, Junhui. My Alpha can’t find his mate. If he could be my leopard to call this wouldn’t be as much of a problem, but we’ve tried. He isn’t the one.”

Jun listened with his hands gripping his knees, and Wonwoo could see the slight tremor as he squeezed. He was still mad. This was as bad as JR, really. Apparently vampires had no decency at all.

“And what exactly do you want me to do about that?” Jun asked, his voice strained.

Taeyong looked a little surprised, mouth forming a little _oh_ before giving Jun another sickly sweet smile.

“Oh, Junhui. I don’t want you to do anything about it. I’m here to find a leopard to call and, with any luck, Ten’s mate. I just came to tell you as a courtesy, really. I know the wolves are your domain. That’s why you and JR just can’t get along. You’re both just dogs chasing their tails.”

Taeyong stood then and stretched his arms over his head. He glanced at his men before giving the slightest nod, and they all filed toward the door.

“Now that I’ve done my duty, I’ll be going. I hope you’ll stay out of my way as much as possible, Junhui.” He was almost out the door before he turned and looked at Wonwoo again. “I’ll be calling on you, necromancer. It’ll be much more fun without all these eyes on us.”

Wonwoo felt like all the air had been knocked out of him, and as soon as the door clicked shut he curled in on himself in his chair, burying his face in his knees. It took twenty heartbeats before he felt Jun on his left and Seungcheol on his right. Jun was saying something to Minghao in Mandarin, but Wonwoo couldn’t be bothered to see if he could understand any of it. Seungcheol put a hand in his hair and Wonwoo leaned into the touch, seeking comfort.

“I didn’t expect him to attack you so directly. I’m glad you’re alright,” Seungcheol said softly. Wonwoo was drained, like Taeyong had sucked the life force out of him. He didn’t feel like talking, not yet, so he let Seungcheol stroke his hair. He felt Jun rest a hand on his arm.

“You did exactly as you should have done, _xiao yòu_. Lee Taeyong is a fool and I’m going to rip his fucking throat out.”

Wonwoo looked up from his knees at Jun’s words. Jun looked like he always did, but his hand had red crescents from where he’d dug his nails into his palms, and his eyes shone with a steely glint Wonwoo had never seen before.

“This is my —” Wonwoo started, but Jun cut him off before he could finish, tightening his grip on his shoulder.

“This is not because of you Wonwoo. Do not _ever_ think that. This is because of me. I told you that things might happen that you would not like. I should have been more prepared.”

Wonwoo slid onto the floor, let himself get sandwiched between the vampires, Jun on the left and Seungcheol on the right. He held their hands in each of his and leaned his head back against the chair. They sat that way for a long time, long enough for Minghao to have put the meeting room in some kind of order, cushions stowed and table more centered.

“What’s going to happen now?”

The sound of Wonwoo’s voice was startling. It was like all the emotion he normally felt was gone, replaced instead by some coldness that was lodged in his chest.

Jun ran a thumb across the top of his hand.

“As much as I hate it, we must continue as usual. Taeyong is going to do as he pleases with the leopards, and if he calls on you —”Jun paused, glancing away before sighing and looking over to Seungcheol, who nodded, “If he calls, you should go. I want to tell you to stay away from him, _xiao yòu_ , but I can’t. We are in a predicament now that he knows about you and Seungcheol. This is dangerous information.”

“Not only are you a necromancer, but now you’re a necromancer with a vampire servant,” Seungcheol finished, giving Wonwoo’s hand a squeeze.

“But that’s not what this is,” Wonwoo said, the emotion seeping back into him making his voice gritty.

“That’s what the rumors say about necromancers. They can make vampires their servants the same way vampires can with humans. They won’t let it stand if they find out, and Junhui and I can only do so much to protect you.”

Wonwoo squeezed their hands in frustration. He bit his lip, wishing he could draw blood, _anything_ to get his mind off the situation. They were helpless, completely at Taeyong’s mercy.

“It’s alright. I know what to expect now. I won’t let what happened tonight happen again,” he sighed out. He gave each vampire a kiss on the cheek before standing up. “If it’s alright with you two, I think I’m going to go home and sleep. I feel like I got hit by a truck.”

The vampires both stood and nodded.

“We have much to plan now that an enemy is in our midst. Sleep well, _xiao yòu_.”

“Text me when you get home,” Seungcheol said, and Wonwoo gave them both a wave as he headed out of the meeting room.

It wasn’t until Wonwoo was changing out of his dress clothes that he found the stones in his inner jacket pocket. They were beautiful. One was smooth and colored like the planet Earth, swirling greens and blues and yellows with veins of black. The other was an almost fluorescent purple swirled with black like marble. He’d never seen stones like them before, and unless Taeyong had slipped them into his jacket he had no idea where they came from. Holding them made him feel weird, like he was vibrating with a weird energy, but he couldn’t seem to let them go.

He slept with them both on his nightstand, a part of him already attached to the strange calm that came with their closeness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me? Writing a Svt NCT crossover? It's more likely than you think ;)
> 
> The story behind this is that when I first started White Noise I was torn between making it a Svt or NCT fic, so for the sequel I said to myself "okay but why not make it both?" and here we are now <3


	6. Chapter 6

Seungcheol and Jeonghan had been trading favors for as long as they’d known each other. It was coincidence that led Seungcheol to the woods six years ago, where he used his influence over wolves to save a boy from being ripped apart by a werewolf on its first hunt. The kid was by himself, maybe camping or maybe on a dare. Seungcheol didn’t know or care, but he did pick up the boy’s blood soaked body and carry him to the nearest hospital, setting him gently in front of the glass doors of the emergency room. He didn’t think about it again for a long time. It was his good deed of the year and he was content to leave it at that.

It was two years later, as he dug orange pill bottles out of a hole in the woods that Wen Junhui, Master of the City, crashed into his life. It wasn’t the first time they’d met, but Seungcheol could tell from the set of Jun’s shoulders that this meeting wouldn’t end with one of them pressed face first into silk sheets. The Master was a beautiful but merciless man, and the way his eyes glinted in the light of the moon told Seungcheol he was going to die.

“You have been selling drugs in my city. Surely you know that I do not condone such conduct from my subjects.”

God, he talked so formally. It was unnerving.

“I’m only doing what my Maker bids me to do, Sir. You know I can’t disobey a direct order.”

Junhui hummed in a bored way, walking a tight circle around him. Seungcheol swallowed audibly even though he didn’t need to. Old habits tended to die hard even as a vampire. Finally Junhui came to a stop in front of him.

“It has been decided. I will forgive your transgressions, you will kill your Maker, and as of this moment you work for me. That should tidy everything up quite nicely.”

Seungcheol blanched. _Kill his Maker_? Wouldn’t that kill him? That’s what he’d been told since the moment he was taken in that alley.

“Sir, with all due respect, if you want us both dead there’s got to be an easier way.”

Jun smirked and it sent a weird thrill down his spine.

“You will not die if you kill him. That is just the ghost story they tell to keep you in line.”

It was two nights later that Seungcheol plunged a stake through the heart of his Maker, and as police sirens wailed down the driveway and red lights flashed into the house he knew he was doomed.

The back door of his Maker’s house flew open and a scrawny kid with long brown hair stared at him like he was seeing a ghost.

“If you follow me, you’ll be safe,” he said, grabbing Seungcheol by the wrist and pulling him with unbelievable strength through the woods.

It wasn’t until they reached a clear stream a few miles from the house that Seungcheol made the connection. He stared at the kid’s hand wrapped around his wrist, at his heaving chest. He stepped closer to brush a lock of hair out of his eyes.

“It’s you.”

The kid smiled in a wry sort of way before dropping his wrist.

“I didn’t know why, but I smelled something and my body just moved on its own. Seems like I knew it was you even before I saw you,” he said. He held out his hand. “I’m Yoon Jeonghan. I guess this is payback for saving my life.”

Seungcheol took his hand between both of his.

“I’m Choi Seungcheol, and I still feel like I owe you.”

The kept meeting, always when one of them needed saving in one way or another.

Once, Seungcheol bumped into Jeonghan at a coffee shop, near hysterics because he wasn’t going to make it to his Law final on time. Seungcheol ran three red lights to get him there.

Jeonghan found Seungcheol in an alley, cornered by a small vampire hunter, a stake pressed tight to his chest. Jeonghan managed to convince the hunter to leave by pointing out that hunting was illegal, and he was a lawyer (student, but the man didn’t need to know that).

They always paid each other back, were always even until Seungcheol messed it all up.

It was two years after Seungcheol had started working for Jun. Seungcheol needed money because he wanted to open a bar. A really cool vampire bar that would make a lot of money once it got going. He refused to ask Junhui for help because the Master was the absolute last person he ever wanted to owe a favor to. He’d probably ask Seungcheol to cut off a pinky as payment.

It was a hunch, really, that led him back to his Maker’s house in the woods. He never knew what became of it and was shocked to see it standing pristine as the day he’d ended the man’s life inside its walls. He knew there was a box buried in the yard where his maker kept a stash of drugs and a good amount of money. If it was still there, Seungcheol would have everything he needed to start his business.

He dug up half the yard before the back door opened and a hulking man stepped outside.

Shit.

The man’s eyes locked to Seungcheol, and before he could think the man charged him. He was pinned against a tree, the bark digging into his back and the man looked at him with wild eyes.

“Tell me why you’re here, vampire. Did the Master send you? I swear to god if Junhui thinks he can boss me around he has another thing coming.”

Seungcheol shook his head quickly.

“No, no. The Master didn’t send me. I’m here looking for something the previous owner left behind, that’s all.”

The man tightened his grip on Seungcheol, hoisting him higher up the tree. It was starting to hurt.

“Never seen a vampire junky before. All the drugs are gone. The money too. Who do you think was helping him push his product?”

The man released him. Seungcheol fell to the ground in a heap, and before he could move to stand the man’s foot came down hard on his knee, the pressure enough to make him hiss.

“Maybe I should send Junhui a message. His authority isn’t recognized by the wolves. Tell him that for me.”

The man eased his foot off Seungcheol then brought it mercilessly down.

Seungcheol screamed, the pain immediate as he felt the crack of bone. He fought every urge to clutch at his knee, to give in to the pain as the man sneered and turned to go back inside.

He limped along for a long time, coming to a stop at the stream he and Jeonghan stopped at those years ago. He lay on the bank next to the water and stared at the half-moon overhead.

“We always find each other in the worst condition, don’t we, Seungcheol?”

He didn’t bother to sit up. Jeonghan walked toward him and laid down next to him.

“I didn’t know the wolves had taken my Maker’s house. I guess there was a lot I didn’t know,” Seungcheol said, the words coming out more defeated than he meant them to.

Jeonghan turned his head to look at him.

“The Alpha won’t forget about this, Seungcheol. He’s going to take it as an opportunity to revolt against the Master.”

“He’s not stupid enough to do that, is he?”

Jeonghan hid a smirk behind his hand. “I can’t speak ill of my Alpha, but let’s just say it wouldn’t surprise me.”

Seungcheol sat up enough to rest his weight on his hands behind him. His knee was still throbbing, but it was growing less painful. He might heal before sunrise. Jeonghan looked at his knee and frowned. His pants covered most of the damage, but Seungcheol could feel the blood sticking to the fabric.

“He did that to you?”

Seungcheol looked sheepish through the pain.

“I did dig up his entire back yard looking for money. I guess he was entitled to it.”

Jeonghan sat up and crossed his legs under him, leveling his eyes at Seungcheol.

“I can help you, if you want. The Alpha trusts me. I can smooth this over for you, and Junhui never has to know. I’ll give you some blood too. It’ll help you heal faster, right?”

Seungcheol stared at Jeonghan for a long time.

“What’s the catch?”

Jeonghan’s smile was wicked. “There’s no catch, Seungcheol. You know how we operate. I’ll do this for you, and you’ll owe me later. It’s as simple as that.”

Seungcheol nodded and Jeonghan held out his wrist like he’d done this before.

Jeonghan’s blood tasted like the wind blowing through pine trees, and when Jeonghan pulled his wrist from Seungcheol’s mouth he replaced it with his lips. He pulled Jeonghan into his lap, let his knee mend while Jeonghan’s tongue traced his like he was coming home.

 

 

 

***

 

 

 

 

Wonwoo woke up in a cold sweat, his heart hammering against his ribcage. He hadn’t dreamed about Seungcheol like that in a long time. His mind was reeling like he’d watched one of those movies with a big twist at the end. He pulled his phone off the bedside table, pointedly ignoring the text from an unknown number to glance at the time. He pulled on his glasses and padded out to the living room.

The shock on his face must have been evident.

Seungcheol and Jeonghan were sitting close together on the couch, heads almost touching as they spoke in low voices. They both turned to look at him, faces mirrored with the same worry.

“This is too weird to be a coincidence,” he murmured, turning on his heel and heading straight for the kitchen. Someone had already made coffee and he felt like crying. He could handle anything if he had enough caffeine.

He sat in a chair across from the couch, tucking his feet under him and taking a long sip from his cup before he spoke.

“So, I just dreamed about your past with Jeonghan, and now Jeonghan is in my apartment. What exactly is going on?”

Jeonghan blanched and Seungcheol sighed.

“You know the vampires are looking for a leopard,” Seungcheol started, and Wonwoo didn’t miss the way Jeonghan stiffened at the words.

 _Joshua_.

Wonwoo felt anxiety in his chest like tree roots, like he was choking on it out of nowhere.

“The Alpha is forcing every leopard in the city to meet that vampire Master. Any leopard that he feels a connection to is leaving the city with him, and any leopard would be thrilled to go.” Jeonghan’s smile was icy. “Well, except for one.”

“Joshua can’t disobey his Alpha. Even I know that. But he can’t leave his life here. He’s worked so hard to build up the Coalition, and he’s got you, Jeonghan.”

Wonwoo willed his heart to beat normally. Joshua couldn’t be Taeyong’s leopard to call. There was no way. That was how things worked in novels, not real life.

Jeonghan’s smile softened into a small, sad thing. “I love Joshua, Wonwoo. I’ve never loved anyone as much as I love him. It’s kind of scary. He’s more important to me than my own life. I won’t let him go. Not without a fight. Not without using everything at my disposal to keep him safe.”

Seungcheol shifted on the couch, and Wonwoo’s eyes turned to him before he could stop himself.

“Jeonghan wants me to try to make him my wolf to call,” Seungcheol said simply, like it wasn’t the most life changing thing he’d said since calling Wonwoo a necromancer in the dark quiet of his bedroom six months ago.

Wonwoo’s dream flashed through his mind again, and he turned to Jeonghan with wide eyes.

“This is your favor.”

Jeonghan nodded. “I think we’re already bound together in some way. We’ve met each other coincidentally so many times it seems more like fate. Being truly bound is nothing if it keeps Joshua away from that vampire.”

“It’s not just that, though,” Jeonghan continued, twisting his hands in his lap, “things are getting worse in the pack. There’s a lot of unrest. More wolves have gone through the shift and they’re starting to look for someone to blame. I think something will happen with the Alpha soon. Being Seungcheol’s wolf to call will give me more power which I’ll need if things continue to worsen.”

Wonwoo let the information process as he finished his coffee. He set the cup back on the coffee table and locked eyes with Seungcheol.

“I think that…for keeping you from starting a war between vampires and werewolves, and for keeping Jun from probably killing you, it’s a pretty fair deal. Are you worried about being bound to two people?”

Seungcheol shook his head and smirked.

“The bond between us is much more intense than the bond I’ll have with Jeonghan. It’s more about making each other stronger.”

Wonwoo turned his eyes to Jeonghan.

“Are you sure Joshua won’t be upset about this?”

“Joshua would do whatever he had to do to keep me safe. I know he would,” Jeonghan said, his voice unwavering.

Wonwoo had known Joshua for a long time, and he wasn’t so sure about Jeonghan’s answer. He knew that it was partly true. Joshua would do anything for the people he cared about. Would he become soul bound to another man if it meant he might be able to prevent someone he loved from being taken by vampires? It was hard to say, but Wonwoo felt like it might be no.

“I guess we’re all in agreement then. You don’t have to have sex for this do you?”

Seungcheol looked mortified and Jeonghan threw his head back in a laugh.

“I thought you two weren’t doing the monogamy thing,” Jeonghan said as he ran a hand through his hair.

Wonwoo stood up and stretched, let something like a smirk play across his lips.

“We aren’t. Maybe I asked because I want to watch. I woke up before I saw what happened after you let Seungcheol drink your blood.”

Jeonghan raised an eyebrow, looking at Wonwoo like he was seeing him for the first time. In a way, he probably was. Wonwoo was sure Jeonghan hadn’t looked at anyone but Joshua like that in a long time.

Seungcheol glanced between the two with something like shock.

“Are you both serious right now?”

Jeonghan sighed. “Seungcheol. I’m literally binding myself to you because of one man. I’m sort of in it for the long haul. Of course this isn’t serious.”

Seungcheol breathed out and slumped against the couch.

“We haven’t settled on a day yet, but it will probably be sooner rather than later,” Seungcheol said plainly.

“Do you think I’ll feel it when it happens?”

Seungcheol shrugged. “You’ll have to let me know.”

Wonwoo nodded and padded back down the hall. Before he turned on the shower he finally checked the message he’d gotten earlier.

_Master Taeyong desires a meeting with you tonight. Capitol Hotel, Room 708. Don’t be late._

He suppressed a shudder and sighed instead.

He didn’t want to go.

That was the truth, but he didn’t have a choice. He didn’t want to make things worse by not going, so he would shower and dress somewhat presentably and try to appease some entitled vampire king. Honestly, watching Seungcheol and Jeonghan go at it would have been a much better way to spend the evening.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you're enjoying the story so far! We're really moving along :D


	7. Chapter 7

Wonwoo made it to the hotel before his nerves got the better of him, but instead of going straight to Taeyong’s suite he ended up in the dim bar instead. He was tucked away in the booth furthest from the entrance, stirring his drink just to watch the ice swirl around the glass.

Was he in the shitty hotel bar because he was afraid of Taeyong, or was it something else?

A tremor climbed up his spine and settled into a strange kind of calm as a man slid into the booth across from him.

“Taeyong won’t like that you’re down here by yourself,” he said, his hands settling against the dark wood of the table.

Wonwoo looked into the face of the man called Taeil. His eyes were warm, but just underneath that simmered something alive and electric. It should have been scary, but Wonwoo wasn’t afraid.

“I’m not sure I care about what Taeyong likes. I haven’t even decided if I should forgive him for digging around in my head,” Wonwoo answered, and Taeil hummed.

His hands traced patterns against the wood, and Wonwoo felt the table grow warm under his arms. He couldn’t hold back his curiosity.

“I don’t mean to sound rude, but what exactly are you?”

Taeil smiled in a way that lit him up from the inside out, like the warmth he put into the table was his own innate energy.

“I’m just a witch. It’s nothing as exciting as you are, Wonwoo. Speaking of, do you think you could let me feel your power? I’ve never met an animator before, much less a necromancer.”

Taeil’s eyes were shining and it was almost infectious. People weren’t usually so interested in his power. Taeil seemed harmless enough, so Wonwoo took a sip of his drink before he nodded.

“I’ve never tried this with a living person, so I’m not sure if it will work.”

Taeil hummed. “Just concentrate on your power and I’ll take care of the rest.”

Wonwoo let his power uncurl from his chest, trailing cool down his arms to the tips of his fingers. Taeil stared at him, amazement clear on his face. He held his hand a few inches above Wonwoo’s own.

It felt kind of strange when their powers touched. It was like déjà vu, like Wonwoo recognized Taeil in some way even though they’d only met once before. Maybe all magic was like that, all stemming from some ancient origin but spread out over the world, and when put back together felt familiar. Taeil’s power was calm, like a lake on a warm summer day, and it felt so alive that Wonwoo worried for a brief moment that his power would swallow it up.

Taeil’s eyes fluttered shut. He was mumbling something too soft for Wonwoo to hear, and his hand grew unbearably hot before Taeil’s hands dropped to the table, his mouth opened in an _oh_ before he blinked and looked to Wonwoo.

“Your power is very...interesting,” he said a little breathlessly, “I think that you and I are a bit alike, Wonwoo.”

“I’m afraid I have no idea what you mean.”

Taeil smiled in a sad way. “I think that both of us are doing things that we don’t want to do because of love, but I didn’t need to feel your power to know that. That was just because I was curious.”

Wonwoo looked into Taeil’s eyes, searching for an answer he wasn’t sure he would ever get. Taeil looked down at the table, his fingers tapping gently against the surface before he glanced up again.

“Did the crystals help you? I tried to pick some that would give you some insight. Did they show you something useful? You have a wealth of magical ability, but it seems you don’t use it for anything aside from raising the dead.”

Wonwoo’s eyebrows drew down before it finally clicked. He’d set the stones on his nightstand but he’d found them tucked under his pillow by morning. Was that why he’d dreamed about Seungcheol? Was Taeil and his magic...helping him somehow?

“How did you get them in my coat? Did you have Taeyong put them there?”

Taeil’s eyes went wide and he held up his hands.

“Oh no. Taeyong doesn’t know that I did that, and I’d appreciate you not telling him.” He leaned closer to Wonwoo, voice dropping to a whisper. “Sometimes the vampires forget that at the end of the day, we’re human. They throw us into the fire and expect us to be okay, but we can always use a little extra insight and protection.”

Wonwoo sat back against the booth. He thought about the strange dream he had, how Taeil had somehow granted him the ability to sate his curiosity. Taeil was with the enemy, but he didn’t seem to _be_ the enemy.

“Why are you here, Taeil? Is that what you meant? You’re here because of love?”

Taeil’s eyes went soft and misty and for a moment he looked like he was about to cry.

“Love is a funny thing, Jeon Wonwoo. The man that I love has no idea that I love him. If I had just told him, everything would be different.” Taeil glanced down at his hands. “But for some reason, I could never find the right time, and now I’m forbidden to do so. If I don’t do what’s asked of me I’ll watch myself grow old and die while he stays young forever. I can’t allow that to happen, so I want you to know that I’m sorry.”

Taeil stood up suddenly, his head turning toward the entrance like he was being called before turning back to Wonwoo.

“After this is all over, if you’ll still talk to me, I’d like to help you expand your powers. Your necromancy won’t always be able to save you, and there might come a time when weapons fail you too. I can show you other ways to protect yourself and the people around you. Someday soon, you’ll probably need it.”

He was gone before Wonwoo could say goodbye, almost like he’d never been there at all, but the table was still warm under Wonwoo’s hands. He downed the rest of his drink and stood up quickly, determined to get the meeting over with before he lost his nerve.

 

 

 

 

***

 

 

 

 

Wonwoo opened the door to Room 708 without knocking. For one, he didn’t feel Taeyong deserved the respect, and second, Taeyong could probably tell from the way his heart beat sounded that it was him.

Taeyong was sitting at the desk in the corner of the suite, laptop open and playing soft acoustics to drown out the silence. He was wearing black jeans and a powder blue hoodie, his hair mussed like he’d been running his fingers through it too many times, and he had a document open on his laptop. The good news was Wonwoo was dressed just as casually, not that he was trying to impress Taeyong. He’d thrown on dark jeans, a long sleeved shirt and the big winter coat he’d borrowed from Seungcheol.

Taeyong turned when he heard the door open and smiled shyly, worlds away from the powerful vampire that had fogged up his brain a few nights ago.

“I wasn’t sure if you’d actually show up,” he said softly, turning around to his laptop to click a few buttons before shutting the document.

Wonwoo couldn’t help himself.

“Are you….working on an assignment?” the shock was evident in his voice, and Taeyong’s face went a little pink.

“I had to take a few semesters off after I got turned.”

“So you haven’t been a vampire for long then?”

Taeyong’s face was carefully blank. “It’s been about five years. It’s kind of a long story. The previous Master left the city in shambles, and I was the only vampire able to take her place. I had to start from scratch and it took a long time to fix what was broken.”

Wonwoo walked into the room and sat on a chair a few feet away from him. Taeyong was young, the youngest vampire he’d ever seen and yet he was ruling over an entire city and holding his own against Junhui. He tried to keep that in the back of his mind, tucked away in the same place he held onto the feeling of his brain going hazy staring into his soft eyes.

“I guess that’s why you dug around in my head. Going up against someone more powerful than you must make you desperate.”

Wonwoo smirked as Taeyong’s eyes flashed anger, but when his expression crumbled into hurt he wasn’t prepared for the way his chest tightened.

“I honestly thought you were marked, and by the time I realized what was happening I’d already seen what you were trying to keep secret,” he said quietly, turning in his chair to face Wonwoo, legs pulled up to his chest and arms wrapped around his knees, “I really am sorry, but I hope you understand that I have a city to protect and a very restless pard of wereleopards that need stability. I have to do things that make me sick to my stomach sometimes, but the group is more important than my feelings.”

Wonwoo nodded and despite his best efforts to stop it a hint of a smile crept onto his face. “I understand, but that doesn’t mean I can forgive you quite yet.”

Taeyong pouted. “If you won’t forgive me can you at least help me?” He turned back to his laptop, body still scrunched in his chair. “I’m trying to finish this paper on symbolism in ‘The Lottery’, but I need one more point.”

Wonwoo stared at the back of Taeyong’s head. “Did you know I was a Lit major in college or were you just blindly hoping I could help?”

He moved to a chair closer to Taeyong and the vampire turned to him with a small smile.

“Maybe a little of both. You think I wouldn’t learn as much as I could before coming to a city full of hostile vampires?”

Wonwoo shrugged and turned his attention to Taeyong’s paper. It wasn’t half bad, all things considered. He read over the lines quickly, squishing in closer so he could scroll down the page without having to ask.

“Their names,” he said finally, and Taeyong turned to him with a questioning look.

“Their names?”

Wonwoo nodded. “The names of the characters are all symbols. Use that as your last point.”

Taeyong grinned. “That’s really smart. Thanks for the advice.”

“You know, it’s kind of ironic that you’re writing an essay about holding on to old traditions as a vampire.”

“Trust me, it’s not lost on me. You can’t imagine how many old Masters I’ve had to cater to. Junhui is refreshing in comparison,” Taeyong answered with a wry kind of smile.

Wonwoo watched in a strangely contented silence as Taeyong finished up his assignment. Taeyong was so ordinary underneath the mask of Master Vampire, like they could both be studying for finals in a coffee shop instead of whatever it was they were doing instead. It made Wonwoo curious. How was Taeyong turned? Why was he the only person able to run his city? What was he doing here? Was it really just the leopards?

Wonwoo was a naturally trusting person by nature, but almost dying had made him realize that some people were just bad, and sometimes blind trust could get you killed. He’d felt Taeyong’s sweet words rub against his mind, had seen the honey laced poison he’d sent at Jun during their meeting. He was dangerous. He shouldn’t be trusted and yet, Wonwoo wanted desperately to believe that Taeyong wasn’t an enemy.

It was because he was attracted to Taeyong.

It was so much like Jun it made his head spin. He’d been scared of Jun at first, but he’d been blindsided by attraction, couldn’t help himself when Jun showed him the things he kept hidden from the rest of the world. Taeyong had dangerous information, Wonwoo knew. He could ruin the life he’d managed to carve out for himself, but he still kind of wanted to kiss him.

“I don’t like that I’m attracted to you,” he said finally, the sudden words making Taeyong jolt in his chair.

He turned to Wonwoo again with a look somewhere between offense and amusement, running a hand through his pretty red hair before replying.

“I don’t know if I like being attracted to you either. I feel like at any moment you could rip my soul out of my body and end my life right here.” The corner of his mouth quirked up. “The truth is that I’m scared of you, but a part of me still wants to kiss you.”

Wonwoo couldn’t keep the smirk off his face. “I don’t think I’m the dangerous one here.”

Taeyong leaned forward, and a warm kind of tension filled Wonwoo’s chest. He didn’t stop until their noses were almost touching. Taeyong glanced down his face, tracing each feature with his eyes like he was painting him into his memory.

“Even so, can I still kiss you?”

Wonwoo’s breath shuddered out between them as he gave the tiniest nod. Taeyong closed the distance between them with a gentle press of lips.

It was kind of sweet, gentle in a way Wonwoo hadn’t been expecting. His lips were cool, and when Wonwoo put his hands over Taeyong’s on the arms of his chair they were cool too. He hadn’t fed yet. The thought made something shoot hot through his abdomen, and he broke the kiss to slot their lips together more firmly. Taeyong moaned into his mouth and he slid his hands up the vampire’s arms.

A blaring chime from his phone made him break the kiss and Taeyong searched his eyes a little desperately as he sighed and silenced the alarm.

“This is to remind me I have a meeting for work that I’m now definitely going to be late to.” He leaned in to peck Taeyong’s lips again. “I really can’t miss it. I hope you won’t be too upset that I have to go.”

He stood up slowly and Taeyong ran his hand through his hair. It seemed like a habit and Wonwoo fought against thinking it was cute.

“Can I see you again?”

Wonwoo didn’t answer until he reached the door, turning back around with a sly kind of grin.

“Call me when you’re not scared of me anymore Taeyong.”

He didn’t stick around to see Taeyong’s reaction. Even speeding, he wouldn’t make it on time. And if there was something Lee Seokmin hated more than Wonwoo himself, it was tardiness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any time I worry I'm giving Wonu too many boys to go heart eyes over I remind myself that in the books, Anita Blake is canonically with 15 people :D 
> 
> I hope the Monday and Thursday updates are working for everyone!!! Thanks as always for sticking with me <333 I love and appreciate you all so sooooo much ;~;


	8. Chapter 8

Wonwoo walked into Seokmin’s office five minutes late, which wasn’t too bad considering he’d had to fight down town traffic and rush hour. Seokmin was sitting next to a stack of paperwork a mile high, and his mouth pressed into a line as Wonwoo shut the door behind him.

“It’s not like you to be late, Wonwoo,” he said, an edge of something in his voice Wonwoo couldn’t place.

He pulled off his coat and hung it off the back of the chair he sat in.

“I’m sorry, Seokmin. I got stuck in rush hour. I didn’t realize the time. I’ve been a little busy with work these days.”

Seokmin frowned and scribbled something on the notepad in front of him. The tension was palpable and it made Wonwoo shift in his seat. God, he wished Mingyu was here. At least then Seokmin would pretend to be cordial with him.

“I need you to help me with a case tomorrow night. I’ve already cleared it with DE. Vernon said it won’t be a problem.”

Wonwoo took a breath. The problem was Jun had requested him to be available just in case their vampire visitors made any requests of him. He’d had the day off from DE anyway, so he hadn’t felt the need to tell Vernon about it.

“I’m afraid I can’t, Seokmin. I’ve got a second job and I’m scheduled to be there tomorrow night. Mingyu can probably help unless you want to do it some other time.”

Seokmin’s hand hit his desk so hard it made Wonwoo jump.

“Cut the bullshit, Wonwoo. I know you’re screwing the vampire that owns White Noise.”

Wonwoo’s jaw dropped but he quickly smoothed his expression to blankness. It wasn’t that his relationship with Seungcheol was a secret, exactly. It was more that he made it a point to keep his work life and personal life as separate as possible.

“I don’t really see what that has to do with anything,” he answered finally, and he knew right away he’d said the wrong thing.

Seokmin’s entire body went rigid and the glare he leveled at Wonwoo could have burned him with how heated it was.

“I’ve had some of my men track you. I was worried about you, and it seems I had every right to be. That vampire is using you to get information from the police. He knows what happened to the suspect in the Younghee case and you’re too blind to see it. He’s brainwashing you every time you let him drink your blood, and don’t you _dare_ say that he doesn’t when I can see that mark on your neck.”

Shit.

Wonwoo forgot all about it, and now the faint pinpricks were on display for everyone to see. He fought the urge to cover it with his hand. He wasn’t ashamed of Jun or Seungcheol and he wasn’t going to let Seokmin make him feel like he should be.

“Seokmin, I’ve told you that no one knows anything about the case. You did everything you could.”

“Don’t patronize me when you’re calling sex with a vampire your second job!”

Wonwoo felt his own anger bloom hot in his chest. Seokmin wasn’t allowed to talk to him like that. No one was allowed to talk to him like that.

“I can sleep with whoever I want on my private time, Seokmin, but if you’re that concerned with my personal life I’m legally employed by the Master of the City. It’s public record.”

Seokmin’s face went from anger to peacefully calm in the blink of an eye.

“You’re working for the Master of the City,” he said too softly as he stood up. His voice was frighteningly level as he walked around the desk toward Wonwoo. “You’re working for a vampire, you’re sleeping with a vampire, and you’re letting a vampire drink your blood regularly. Is that it? Did I miss anything else?”

There was a part of Wonwoo that wanted to take a deep breath and calmly explain things to Seokmin. Like that Wonwoo wasn’t their only source of blood. He’d already done some research, and he didn’t make enough blood to keep them both alive, so they fed from willing donors or bags they bought off hospitals.

But Wonwoo couldn’t reel in his anger fast enough before he snapped out, “I’m sleeping with two vampires, Seokmin, not one. My best friend is a wereleopard, and his boyfriend is a werewolf. Is all of that a problem for you?”

Seokmin hoisted Wonwoo up by his shirt and pushed him into the wall. He’d never seen Seokmin angry before, didn’t know the man could get angry like this. He could see nothing but hatred in the way Seokmin looked at him, crowding into his space like he was going to hit him.

“You’re nothing like the man I thought you were, Jeon Wonwoo. That magic you do is evil. I only put up with it to help the victims and their families, but it _disgusts_ me. And now you tell me you associate with monsters? You’re friends with them, you fuck them, you bleed for them. That’s not how a human acts around monsters.”

Wonwoo could feel Seokmin’s breath hot on his face. He held Seokmin’s gaze, anger winning out over fear. He let the feeling settle in his chest, let Seokmin’s words flit through his mind and sneered, his voice pitched low.

“You wonder why I’m so sympathetic to the monsters. The answer is simple. Because I am one.”

He planted his hands on Seokmin’s chest and pushed him hard enough that he stumbled backwards. Wonwoo ducked away from the wall and snatched his coat off the back of the chair. He threw the office door open and made sure his voice carried over the dull murmurs of the police station.

“We’re done. Don’t ever contact me again, Lee Seokmin. You can solve your own cold cases. I refuse to work with a bigot, and I won’t work with someone who thinks assault is a solution to a problem.”

He slammed the door shut, ignoring the eyes glued to him as he made his way out of the building and into the safety of his car.

His hands were shaking so hard he couldn’t get his keys into the ignition. He stopped and took a deep breath, willing his nerves to settle. It was only after he’d managed to start the car that the tears fell. He threw up shields like steel walls, keeping Seungcheol as far away from his mind as he could while still maintaining their bond.

The truth was Wonwoo enjoyed working on cold cases. Helping people was how he’d coped with his powers for a long time. He brought people back from the dead to help them, believed in his heart that he was given these powers to help and heal and yet —

Every human he’d ever been close with told him he was a monster.

His parents had made that abundantly clear throughout his childhood. He was sick; he needed meds and to stop daydreaming. His powers were just a fantasy, and seeing it with their own eyes had only made it worse.

His first girlfriend told him the same thing when she broke his heart into a million unsalvageable pieces. Even after he’d put them all back together, the scars remained.

Vernon only cared about money (and maybe Seungkwan). How that money ended up in his bank account didn’t matter to him, so it was hard to say what his feelings truly were on animators.

Seungkwan wasn’t the kind to judge and was maybe the only human in Wonwoo’s life that made him feel like he was allowed to exist, that being an animator didn’t make him any different.

Anger and hurt mixed together and ran in streams down his face and after a while Wonwoo wondered if Seokmin was right, if they were all right in the end.

He was permanently bound to a vampire because of his own power, because he wasn’t just an animator anymore.

He’d killed someone, shot them and left them to die. He gunned down a pack of ghouls just a few days ago. When he held a gun, the world faded away to his sight down the barrel, the exhale as he pulled the trigger, and in that moment he felt blissfully empty in a way that should have been scary.

He wiped his eyes hurriedly, pressing his palms hard against the sockets. He sat in the warm quiet of his car for a long time. He watched the moon peek out from behind the station, watched the wind blow the naked tree branches. He couldn’t shake the thought as it took up residence in his heart, spreading like black ink through his veins.

Maybe he died the day he was bound to Seungcheol. Maybe…he really wasn’t human.

Maybe he never had been.


	9. Chapter 9

He ended up at Jun’s apartment. His thoughts were too jumbled and he didn’t want to risk Seungcheol feeling anything. The closer they were to each other, the more their bond opened up and sometimes no amount of shielding could keep things private.

Ideally, he’d find Jun sprawled on the couch and he’d let the vampire take his mind off of anything that wasn’t his lips and his hands and his body. In reality, Jun was in his office with the door firmly closed which he only did when he was in the middle of actual business. So Wonwoo did the next best thing. He grabbed the blanket off the back of the couch and snuggled into it, hugging his knees and making himself as small as possible.

It was how Minghao found him a while later. He walked over and sat next to him.

“Junhui is in the middle of a business call. I’m sure he knows you’re here. He’ll probably be out soon,” Minghao said before his eyebrows pulled down in concern. He looked like he wanted to say something, his mouth twitching like he was looking for the words, but in the end he stayed silent.

Wonwoo was quiet for a long time and Minghao sat next to him like he didn’t have better things he could be doing. It was his silent presence that let Wonwoo say it out loud.

“Minghao, do you think that I’m human?”

It was so soft he was sure Minghao wouldn’t hear, but suddenly the other boy shifted closer and put Wonwoo’s head against his shoulder. He smelled like laundry detergent and the soft echo of Jun’s cologne and Wonwoo sighed against him.

“Jeon Wonwoo. I’ve never met anyone quite like you in all the years I’ve been alive. I don’t know exactly what brought this about, but you have a big heart and that alone makes you undeniably human.”

Wonwoo moved his head back just enough to see Minghao’s face. He gave Wonwoo a soft smile.

“I haven’t been technically human for a long time so my opinion might not matter as much, but I think human is more a state of mind. To me, Junhui has never lost his humanity. He has always done what he had to do to survive, but he’s not as ruthless as people think. That’s just for show. It’s the same for you, Wonwoo. Magic doesn’t negate humanity. They can and do co-exist.”

Wonwoo put his head back on Minghao’s shoulder and let the words wash over him. He sighed.

“I’ve never met a human that didn’t think I was a monster,” he said finally, and Minghao snorted, jostling his head with the force of it.

“I’ve never met a human that wasn’t a monster.”

Wonwoo kept his head on Minghao’s shoulder but turned toward the sound of Jun’s voice. Today was gray slacks and a white button down, and as he came to sit on the arm of the couch by Wonwoo he opened the top button of his shirt. He waited for Wonwoo to meet his eyes before he continued.

“Wonwoo, my lovely necromancer. I have been alive for almost 500 years. I have met more humans, vampires and lycanthropes than you can even fathom. The worst monsters I have ever encountered have been humans…with a few exceptions of course.” He slid off the arm and onto the couch proper, causing Wonwoo to fall on Minghao and Minghao to extract himself with a huff. “I will never think of you as a monster, _xiao yòu_. Even if you start executing vampires. Even if you end more lives. Even if you give up your mortality all together.”

Jun moved up the couch until he could pull Wonwoo into his chest. The last thing he saw before Jun wrapped him up was Minghao’s eye roll and gentle smile as he walked down the hall.

Wonwoo was quiet for a long time. He let Jun rub soothing circles into his back, let the rhythmic way he was breathing calm the whirlwind of thoughts racing through his mind. Jun always knew what he needed.

“You are so many wonderful things, _xiao yòu_. Sometimes I look at you and nothing else seems to matter,” Jun murmured quietly into his hair. “I haven’t fallen in a long, long time, Wonwoo. Sometimes I think I would let myself fall, even without knowing that you’d catch me.”

Looking up at Jun, Wonwoo felt something bloom in his chest. He was glad the flush that crept up his face could be chalked up to how upset he’d been earlier. Wonwoo had feelings for Jun, obviously. But he was starting to think that maybe things were more serious between them than he wanted to admit out loud. Maybe he wanted Jun to be his boyfriend for real.

Maybe.

Probably.

Wonwoo watched the way Jun’s face lit up as he smiled and he leaned forward to kiss the corner of his mouth.

“I wouldn’t let you hit the ground, Junhui,” Wonwoo whispered when he broke the kiss, “I’m not going anywhere.”

 

 

 

***

 

 

 

 

Wonwoo fell back against the sheets, pulling Jun with him so they were lying side by side. He spent a long time just looking at Jun, admiring the way his gray hair made his eyes almost glow. He moved his hands to Jun’s shirt, popping open a button just so he could see more of his skin.

“When I got here I just wanted you to fuck me into a better mood, but you already made me feel better.”

Jun’s eyes lit up and he rolled on top of him, his hands on either side of Wonwoo’s head.

“Do you not want me to fuck you, _xiao yòu_?” he asked, his voice innocent but his eyes dark with desire.

Wonwoo shivered.

He kept their eyes locked while he slowly undid the buttons of Jun’s shirt, his hands splaying across his skin as soon as it was open. Jun smirked and leaned down to nip gently at his neck.

“No fair,” Wonwoo sighed out, digging his nails into Jun’s hips, “Don’t tease me if you won’t follow through.”

Jun licked a hot stripe up his neck and Wonwoo’s whole body tingled.

“Sometimes I think you want me to bleed you dry. I can bite you as many times as you like, _xiao yòu_. You only have to ask and I will do anything you want.”

Jun murmured the words into his skin and it was like Wonwoo’s brain shut off entirely. He pulled Jun up to his lips in a searing kiss, licking into his mouth so quickly that his tongue slid against the point of Jun’s fangs and he tasted blood. Jun rolled his hips, grinding against him and he made an embarrassing keen when their erections pressed together.

Jun never failed to make Wonwoo desperate. Jun liked to press as many of Wonwoo’s buttons as he could and Wonwoo tried to see how long he could hold out before he was begging Jun to let him come _please Master anything please_.

It was a game, and it was probably a tie.

Not that Wonwoo was keeping score.

Jun sat up to slide out of his button down and Wonwoo took the opportunity to nip at his hip bones, smirking as Jun shuddered above him.

“Now who is the one teasing. Or do you plan to put that lovely mouth to use?” Jun asked, voice pitched low in a way that made Wonwoo’s toes curl against the sheets.

He pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it in some corner of the room. He grabbed Jun by the belt loops, pulling him closer to mouth at his cock through his slacks. Jun’s breath hitched as he tangled his hand in Wonwoo’s hair and that was all incentive he needed.

Wonwoo pulled Jun’s slacks down his thighs just enough to free his half hard cock. He took a little time to slide his hands up the backs of Jun’s legs, up the curve of his ass, watching the way his touches made Jun’s cock grow harder and his hand tighten just a little in Wonwoo’s hair.

He smirked up at Jun, meeting his eyes just as he licked a long stripe from base to tip. He watched Jun’s thighs tense, watched as he fought the urge to chase Wonwoo’s mouth with his hips. Arousal shot hot through his body.

He leaned forward and finally took Jun into his mouth, groaning when Jun’s hand went almost too tight in his hair. He moved one hand from Jun’s hip and wrapped it around what his mouth couldn’t reach and Jun sighed above him.

Wonwoo bobbed his head, taking a little more of Jun each time he sank down. He was doing his best to press Jun’s buttons. It might not be a competition but Wonwoo loved seeing what kind of mess he could make of the Master of the City.

Wonwoo glanced up through his eyelashes. He moaned around Jun’s cock at the way the vampire was looking down at him, flushed and panting, the hand not in Wonwoo’s hair trailing slowly down his chest. It made him take Jun as far as he could, his eyes fluttering shut when Jun’s cock twitched against his tongue. He kept Jun down his throat as long as he could, hyper-focused on the way Jun kept gasping above him, the way his hand had went lax in his hair, like he didn’t trust himself enough to have that much control of Wonwoo’s mouth.

Wonwoo moved back enough to breathe, his hand wrapping around the base of Jun’s cock again. He was straining against his jeans, each lick and stroke to Jun’s cock sending wave after wave of heat through him. He wondered a little dazedly if Jun could hear the way his heart was hammering, if he knew how little he actually had to do to make Wonwoo a complete wreck.

Jun pulled him all the way off his cock by his hair, his cupping Wonwoo’s jaw with both hands.

“I want to touch you too, _xiao yòu_. Will you let me?”

Wonwoo’s whole face went hot, but he nodded. Jun moved to the other side of the bed and while he was getting out the lube Wonwoo shimmied out of his pants, sighing when the pressure eased off his dick.

As soon as Jun turned back toward him, bottle in hand, he pushed Jun against the mattress and worked his slacks off. They were both naked, eyes roaming over each other like it was the first time. Wonwoo’s heart hammered in his chest. Jun pulled him down for a kiss and Wonwoo melted against him, reaching between them to grip the base of Jun’s cock, smiling against his lips when Jun gasped.

“You have become such a tease in such a short time. What do I have to do for you to let me touch you?” Jun murmured. He squeezed Wonwoo’s hip and gave him a smoldering look that had Wonwoo sighing and extracting himself from Jun’s arms. He turned on top of him so he was facing the other way and fought through the embarrassment of being so on display by sliding his mouth over Jun’s dick. He could hear Jun slicking up his fingers and as he felt one circle his entrance he shuddered, moaning around the cock in his mouth.

His finger slid inside and Wonwoo had to pop off Jun’s cock to moan. He was already so hot with arousal and the position made Jun slide so deep inside him. It was already too much.

He ran his tongue up the shaft and over the head, dipping just a bit into the slit before he slid his mouth down again. Jun was making the prettiest breathy sighs under him. He was so distracted by the way Jun’s body was moving under him that he barely noticed Jun adding a second finger, crooking them down until he pressed lightly against his prostate.

“ _Jun —_ ” Wonwoo ground out, fighting the urge to thrust back against his fingers. He wouldn’t beg. Not yet.

He heard the little huff of laughter Jun let out as he continued petting his fingers over that spot. Wonwoo’s whole body was like a live wire. He buried Jun’s cock as far down his throat as he could, breathing harsh through his nose and fighting the way his body shook with each press of Jun’s fingers.

“You’re so beautiful, _xiao yòu_. Your body listens to me so well. I think you deserve a reward.”

Jun slid three fingers inside of him, stroking and pressing against his prostate and Wonwoo saw white. Everything was too much and he took his mouth off Jun’s cock as he came between them, his body shuddering as Jun worked him through it.

He was still gasping when Jun took his fingers out of him and wiped them on the sheets. Wonwoo fell onto the bed, doing his best to get his breathing back to normal as he rolled onto his back. Jun ran his hands over his skin, smearing Wonwoo’s come around until he was slick with it. It was more erotic than it should have been, and he could already feel arousal ebbing through him again.

Jun’s eyes raked over him hungrily, stopping at his softening dick and he almost shouted when Jun took him in his mouth. He was still sensitive, way too sensitive for that much contact. He worked his mouth around gently at first, patient even as his own cock was straining between his legs. Wonwoo fought through the borderline pain of overstimulation and Jun rubbed his hands soothingly against Wonwoo’s skin until everything circled back around to a hazy pleasure.

Jun took his mouth off his cock and grinned, and Wonwoo pulled him up for another heated kiss. Jun’s cock was pressed against his hip and he pressed up just to hear the way Jun groaned into his mouth.

“Are you gonna fuck me now?” he asked, voice low and close to wrecked. Jun nipped at his bottom lip before sitting up and slicking his cock with lube.

He wrapped one of Wonwoo’s legs around his hip as he lined up and Wonwoo squeezed him with it just to pull him closer.

“You are the one who came and yet you are so impatient.”

Jun’s eyes went dark again and as he pushed in his eyelids fluttered shut. Wonwoo sucked in a breath. Jun slid in smoothly, not stopping until he bottomed out. It was quiet for a moment, their breaths the only sound in the dim bedroom. Jun rubbed his hands down Wonwoo’s thighs and pulled back just a bit. Wonwoo’s hands dug into the sheets but he let out a shaky _move_ and Jun kept going, inching out until he could thrust smoothly back in.

He set an easy pace, each thrust ending in a jolt of heat through Wonwoo’s body. Jun reached for his hand and brought it up to his mouth.

“Should I bite you now, _xiao yòu_? Would you like to come again?”

Jun’s voice was low but Wonwoo could hear the strain, could hear how he was probably holding back just to get Wonwoo there again.

That was always how Jun was. Always curbing his own desire to give Wonwoo whatever he wanted.

“I want you to come, god Jun _please —_ ” Wonwoo rasped out as Jun sucked two of his fingers in his mouth. Wonwoo could feel the points of Jun’s fangs and he moaned, rolling his hips to match Jun’s thrusts. He lost his rhythm when he pulled Wonwoo’s fingers out of his mouth. His tongue traced the inside of his wrist.

It was when he felt the soft press of teeth that Wonwoo lost track of what was falling out of his mouth, some mix of _oh god please Jun please_.

Jun bit him as he pounded into him, and the hazy sweet pleasure that always came with Jun’s bites flooded him with another kind of arousal. He could tell Jun was close by the way he moaned around Wonwoo’s wrist, some of the blood leaking out of the corner of his mouth.

Wonwoo’s second orgasm caught him by surprise. Somewhere between watching his blood drip down Jun’s chin and the way Jun hit his prostate Wonwoo came with a shout, his back arching off the bed at the force of it. Jun pulled off his wrist with a broken moan, his breathing ragged as he thrust into Wonwoo again, and when their eyes locked Jun bit his red stained lips. He thrust once, twice, before pulling out and coming over Wonwoo’s skin with a gasp, his hand working over his cock as he shuddered above him.

Wonwoo didn’t wait for Jun to finish, just pulled him down by the back of the neck and licked into his mouth. Jun collapsed against him, neither of them caring about the slick mess between their bodies. Wonwoo pulled back and licked at the drying blood at the corner of Jun’s mouth and Jun’s nose scrunched up before he broke out into a grin.

“I might need you to carry me to the shower,” Wonwoo said, still breathless. Jun buried his face in his neck.

“You ask so much of me, _xiao yòu_. After all the pleasure I have given you...I will remember this for next time.”

Wonwoo sighed and kissed his cheek.

“Do I need to carry you instead?”

Jun winked.

“Who am I to turn down such a considerate offer?”

 

 

 

 

***

 

 

 

 

Wonwoo was on his back with Jun tucked against his side. A thought was flitting its way through his head. He’d been thinking about it since his meeting with Taeyong, since the kiss, and he sighed as his hand rubbed against Jun’s waist.

“I have to talk to you about something. About Taeyong.”

Jun’s body went rigid beneath his hand and he could feel the vampire force his body back to normal before he turned so they could speak face to face.

“ _What_ has he done now?”

He took a deep breath. He just needed to say it.

“I might sleep with him.”

Jun went completely still, that special kind of still that came from him being a very old vampire. He didn’t breathe, didn’t speak, for such a long time that Wonwoo’s nerves got the better of him.

“I just wanted to tell you instead of you finding out later. I mean, if it happens. I don’t really know what’s happening with him. It’s…confusing.”

Jun finally exhaled and placed a hand on Wonwoo’s chest.

“ _Xiao yòu_ , I told you in the beginning that I do not care how many lovers you have. Honestly, part of me is hesitant about this, but part of me thinks it may work out for the best in the long run. I appreciate that you told me. It’s quite sweet of you.”

Wonwoo’s face felt warm but a tiny bit of weight eased off his shoulders. Would he still pursue whatever was happening with Taeyong if Jun had said no?

His mind drifted back to the night of the ghoul attack, when he’d been thinking about making things official with Seungcheol. He thought about what Jun had said earlier. He thought about the way his heart burst like fireworks when he looked in Jun’s eyes.

Maybe he would have given it up.

For him.

For them.

“So you’re not mad?” he asked as he moved his hand up Jun’s side.

“Nothing pleases me more than knowing Lee Taeyong will be with you and then go home to rot in the city he built while I get to have to as long as you will let me.”

Jun leaned his head against Wonwoo’s shoulder. It was just like him to look at a situation like that with practicality while still being petty.

Jun’s mouth quirked up at the corners. “I am beginning to think that you are attracted to danger.”

“Just because I’m attracted to him doesn’t mean I trust him. I know he’s the enemy.”

Jun leaned closer until his nose was just touching Wonwoo’s cheek, his lips close to his ear.

“That is what excites you, I think. You like that he is dangerous in a way Seungcheol and I are not, at least not anymore. As long as you remember that his motives are not known to us, everything will be fine.”

Wonwoo couldn’t help the shiver that ran through him. His lovers were sure excited by the prospect of him sleeping with other people, which made him think about Jun sleeping with someone else. His mind was quick to supply Seungcheol, and he had to bite his lip to keep from groaning out loud. Jun looked at him and smirked.

“Your heart is beating quite fast. I wonder why.”

Wonwoo tugged Jun on top of him and trailed his hands down his back.

“I’m thinking about you in bed with Seungcheol.”

Jun’s eyebrows rose in surprise.  “Oh? I didn’t take you as a voyeur, _xiao yòu_. Would you want to watch? Or do you want both of us at the same time?”

Jun’s hand went between them, tracing lightly against his quickly growing erection.

“Why can’t it be both?” he hissed out as Jun’s hand pressed more firmly against him.

Jun pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth. “After you talk to Seungcheol, it can be anything you want it to be. It has been a long time since I have been in bed with him. It’s a little thrilling to think about.”

Jun’s hand continued a slow pace and Wonwoo slid his hands behind Jun’s neck and pulled him into a kiss. He felt Jun’s cock against his leg and he moaned into his mouth. Jun’s tongue traced his teasingly before he broke the kiss.

“I want to see how long I can keep you from coming with my mouth,” he said with an almost feral grin.

Wonwoo groaned as he dipped under the sheets, and the second Jun’s lips wrapped around him he knew he was done for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're about half way now everyone! I hope you're enjoying the story so far!!


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time for my first ever POV switch!

Taeyong sat at the small desk in his hotel room. Papers were scattered all around him, mostly Intel reports and faxes. His laptop sat open but forgotten by his side.

He ran his fingers through his hair and tugged, his eyes screwed shut as he fought off the tangle of emotions bouncing around his head.

The door to his room clicked open softly and he heard the pad of footsteps heading toward him before stopping at the bed.

“What can I do to help you?” Yuta asked as he sat at the head of the bed. Taeyong turned to him and for a fraction of a second let him see what kind of mess he was in.

Yuta was the only person he brought with him to the city that knew everything. He’d been with Taeyong since the beginning, was probably the most important person in his life, and he was allowed to see what the situation was doing to him.

Taeyong sighed. “Honestly, I don’t think anyone can help me at this point. I know what I have to do. I know what I came here for, but it’s hard.”

Yuta leaned back against the headboard and gave Taeyong a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Your heart is so big, Taeyong. You care too much. It’s one of the things I love about you, but I hate that it causes you so much pain.”

Taeyong turned away to rifle through the papers on the desk before holding a few out to Yuta.

“Intel reports are saying the wolf Alpha is dead. I don’t know if it was an assassination or a coup, but things are heading in the right direction. The wolves are at a vulnerable point, and that means we have to move quickly before another Alpha is appointed.”

Yuta scanned over the papers and nodded, his mouth set in a line.

“Junhui isn’t a fool. If he is to fall, we have to do it ourselves.”

Taeyong pulled at his hair again, eyeing Yuta with a cold kind of determination. “Nothing matters more to me than saving us.”

Yuta’s smile was sad. “You can keep telling yourself that, Taeyong, but we both know that’s not exactly true.”

Yuta stood, leaving the papers Taeyong handed him on the bed as he headed toward the door. He opened it and sighed, turning back to Taeyong with a sad kind of smile.

“I don’t hate Junhui or his people. You don’t either. Maybe a third option will spring up. Maybe we can get out of this in one piece.”

The sound of the door clicking shut echoed in Taeyong’s mind. He slumped against his desk chair and stared at the ceiling without blinking for a long time.

 

 

 

***

 

 

 

It was an hour later, and Taeyong’s eyes were blurring from looking at the papers on his desk for so long. He almost walked out of the room, but his phone picked that time to ring. He squeezed his eyes shut, took a deep, steadying breath, and answered.

“It’s Taeyong.”

_“How are things, my pet?”_

Taeyong grit his teeth. He really hadn’t wanted to take this call.

“Fine. Just fine. Though I will say things aren’t quite the way you described them to me before I came here.”

Something on the other end of the phone crashed and Taeyong winced at the sound. He probably shouldn’t have said that.

_“Taeyong. You know that I have our best interests at heart. Remember how it was that you became Master of the City. The moment you forget that is the moment you doom your people.”_

“I haven’t forgotten. I know why you sent me here. Everything is almost in place.” He sighed and leaned back against the desk chair. “I’ve received word that the Alpha is dead. Junhui’s power comes under question more and more every day. There’s just one more piece to take away and we’ll be done.”

_“Good. Very good. And I trust you’ve made the proper arrangements for that unsightly necromancer.”_

Taeyong thought about Wonwoo. How he was so much more than just his ability to raise the dead. He thought about the way Junhui and his Second looked at him. Not with fear, no, but with something else entirely. He thought about the way Wonwoo’s lips felt against his, warm and soft and gentle.

He tugged on his hair again, snapping himself back to reality.

“Everything is as you’ve ordered it, sir.”

_“Wen Junhui has been testing my patience for a long time, Taeyong. The moment he decided to spare that monster was the moment that I knew we had to act. You’ve made this so much easier for me, pet. You and all the powerful allies you’ve collected since you became Master.”_

Taeyong shuddered.

“When everything is done, I’ll let you know.”

The man on the other end hummed before the line went dead. Taeyong tossed his phone on the desk and buried his face in his hands.

It was only a little more. A little longer and then he could go home and all of this could be over.

He walked to the bathroom and scrubbed his hands under water as hot as he could make it, until his skin was red and raw, and then he did it again.

It was a habit from when he was human. It wasn’t like he could get sick anymore. There wasn’t any real reason for him to do it, but it was so easy to get lost in the rhythm of it, to scrub and scrub until his fingers bled.

It used to make him feel better, but ever since he’d been turned it seemed he could never wash the filth from his hands no matter how hard he tried.

He went back to grab his phone from the desk and flopped against the soft sheets of his hotel bed.

He opened his messages and stared at Wonwoo’s name for a long time.

How much longer was he going to let it go on? He already knew how it had to end. Yuta told him to hope for a third option, but the truth was Taeyong stopped hoping when he was face up in the back alley of a night club, staring at the pinpricks of the stars as his own hot blood pooled around his head like a halo.

There was only one way for them to stay safe and it didn’t include the way his heart sped up at the thought of a necromancer.

He sighed and typed out the message. He might as well let it go on a little longer.


	11. Chapter 11

It was a week later when Wonwoo got the text. He’d put it out of his mind for the most part, Taeyong and the leopards and the inevitable clock ticking down to whatever would happen between them. He’d pointedly ignored any and all phone calls from Seokmin, spent the nights he wasn’t working curled up with a book until Seungcheol got home or watching Jun’s face light up while watching old movies.

When he checked his phone, he saw the text had been sent just before dawn.

_I’m not scared. Let’s go somewhere tonight._

He sighed, the reality weighing him down before excitement could even set in. He still had to tell Seungcheol about Taeyong. It wasn’t something they’d explicitly said, but Wonwoo knew he would feel better if he did. Plus, Jun already knew so it was only fair.

By the time Wonwoo made it home from the office, Seungcheol was curled up on the couch, wrapped up in a blanket like he could feel cold and his black hair just starting to dry from the shower. Seungcheol watched him pull off his shoes with a soft kind of fondness that made Wonwoo’s chest tight.

Seungcheol opened his blanket as Wonwoo approached the couch and he sunk against him gratefully. Seungcheol wrapped his arms around his shoulders and kissed him softly on the lips.

“I hope work wasn’t too bad. You look rough.” Seungcheol rubbed his nose against Wonwoo’s cheek and his face heated up in spite of himself.

Such a sap.

“Gee, thanks. Good to know that I look terrible considering I have a date tonight.”

Seungcheol’s eyebrows rose. “It’s not your usual night to see Junhui. Did he spring something on you or do we have plans I forgot about?”

Wonwoo took a breath, turning a little so he could face Seungcheol more directly.

“No, I — I’m meeting Taeyong tonight. It, um, I’m not sure if it’s a date, exactly, but it could be. It might be,” Wonwoo said, his voice quieting as he looked down at his socks.

For a long time, Wonwoo’s only relationships were physical, no strings, no commitments. Seungcheol and Jun were the first people he’d ever had this kind of relationship with. It worked for them.

And yet that voice in the back of his mind whispered that something good couldn’t last, that jealousy would take over one of them, that everything would crumble at his feet because Jeon Wonwoo wasn’t allowed to have anything good, not for long.

Seungcheol’s hand found his cheek and raised his face so they were eye to eye again. He smiled so gently that Wonwoo’s heart ached.

“You act like you’re doing something wrong. I can feel it.” He stroked Wonwoo’s face and smirked. “You’re so bad at shielding when you actually want to keep me out of your head. It’s kind of funny.”

Wonwoo let out a quiet laugh. “I just,” he sighed and rubbed against Seungcheol’s hand, “I know what I want, and I _know_ this isn’t really wrong, but sometimes it still _feels_ wrong. I’m worried you’ll be mad and jealous and leave me.”

Seungcheol leaned in and kissed him like he was trying to take all of Wonwoo’s jumbled feelings away.

“This might surprise you, but you know you’re stuck with me, right? You can have a hundred boyfriends and girlfriends and I’ll still be right here. As long as you’re honest with me and I’m honest with you, everything will be okay.”

Wonwoo felt the rest of that weight ease off his chest like he was breaking the surface of a lake, gasping in deep breaths of air after being at the bottom so long.

“You promise that you aren’t upset? I mean, Taeyong is kind of our enemy.” Wonwoo couldn’t help but pick a little more. Pick and pick and see if it breaks. It was an old habit.

Seungcheol sighed. “I trust you enough to know that you wouldn’t put yourself in danger on purpose. If you like him, if you want this to be a date, then that’s enough for me.”

Wonwoo reconnected their lips. When they broke apart, he slid his still cool hands against Seungcheol’s blanket warmed skin.

“So, can you help me pick out something to wear or is that not allowed?”

Seungcheol’s grin was wicked as he stood and pulled Wonwoo up by the hand.

“I’ll have that kid bowing at your feet.”

 

 

 

***

 

 

 

 

Taeyong slid into Wonwoo’s car and shot him the sweetest smile he’d maybe ever seen. He was dressed in a long gray coat and black pants. Taeyong’s fingers were an angry red, like he’d scrubbed his hands under scalding water, or like he could actually feel the cold outside. Wonwoo turned up the heat in his car before turning to face the vampire.

“So, where are we going?” he asked as he fought off the urge to warm Taeyong’s hands between his own.

Taeyong leaned back against the seat and closed his eyes.

“Take me somewhere quiet. I want to see where you go when you want to get away.”

Wonwoo’s eyebrow twitched. “Are you sure that’s what you want?”

Taeyong nodded, his eyes still shut, and Wonwoo’s mouth turned up at the corners as he put his car in drive.

It took them twenty minutes to get there. Wonwoo drove up the hill, the moon a heavy waxing gibbous against a backdrop of stars. The snow was completely undisturbed. Even after living in a place with so much snow for most of his adult life, the way the moonlight reflected off of it and made everything look as bright as daylight was still amazing to him. For all its inconvenience, he couldn’t find the heart to hate snow like many who’d lived in the city their entire lives seemed to.

“We’re here,” he said softly. Taeyong blinked his eyes open like he’d actually been asleep, and he looked at the scene in front of him for a long time before turning to Wonwoo with surprise clear on his face.

“A cemetery?”

Wonwoo opened the car door and stepped into the chill. He turned to look back inside at Taeyong.

“Are you coming?”

Taeyong opened the door as Wonwoo shut his. He walked forward toward the older graves and he heard the soft crunch of Taeyong’s footsteps not far behind.

The graves were a lovely dichotomy of luxury and simplicity all wrapped in a cool blanket of snow. Wonwoo stopped in front of one and waited for Taeyong to reach his side.

“The dead are at peace here. They aren’t in pain. They aren’t sad or hurt or angry or anything really,” he started, turning toward Taeyong and meeting his eyes, “I can feel them under the ground. Well, I can feel the bodies. The souls aren’t here, but I can feel that they’re at peace.”

Taeyong’s eyebrows rose and he glanced at the grave in front of them before looking into his eyes again.

“What about the bad ones? Are they at peace too?”

“I don’t raise bad people if I can help it. One of my first jobs was to raise an arsonist. I didn’t know that at the time. His soul —” Wonwoo took a breath as he shuddered. “His soul was black. Hot and black. I had to kill three chickens to get him out of the ground. I don’t think his soul was supposed to leave the place I pulled it from. After that I insisted on thorough background checks for clients and the dead.”

“I heard that you don’t use animal sacrifice?” the way Taeyong said it was more of a question, and Wonwoo shrugged.

“At first I did. It was the way I was taught, but I also didn’t have as much control over my power in the beginning.”

Taeyong nodded and walked a few paces away. He looked up at the sky, looked at the rows of headstones, the snow on the ground only disturbed by their footprints.

“I can see why you like it here. Most humans would think it was a little morbid, but the silence here is kind of nice. It’s a good place to clear your head.”

“The dead don’t have any worries or judgments.” Wonwoo gave him a wry smile as he walked closer. “But I don’t think I qualify as most humans. It’s debatable whether I’m even human at all.”

Taeyong’s mouth turned down at the corners and he narrowed his eyes. “How is that up for debate? Your heart beats. You don’t have greater than normal speed or strength, so you’re not a lycanthrope. You’re the textbook definition of human.”

Wonwoo sighed. He didn’t know Taeyong well enough to really unpack the issue, so he relented.

“You’re right, I guess. Other than the necromancy and the soul bond to a vampire, I’m pretty ordinary.”

When he came to a stop next to him, Taeyong set a hand on his shoulder. His hands were still a frightening shade of red and Wonwoo could feel the chill through his coat.

It started snowing. Big gentle flakes fell all around them. The world was a soft white glow and Wonwoo couldn’t stop staring into Taeyong’s eyes. They were so warm, so alive, that Wonwoo forgot that he promised himself he wouldn’t look into his eyes like that. He felt something warm but electric buzz through his veins. He wanted to kiss Taeyong again, pick up where they left off.

Taeyong squeezed his shoulder gently.

“I don’t think you could be ordinary if you tried, Jeon Wonwoo.”

Taeyong’s hair was dusted with white. Wonwoo focused on the way the flakes clung to his eyelashes and before he had time to really think about what he was doing he tilted Taeyong’s chin up and kissed him.

Taeyong let out a pleased little hum and wound his freezing hands into Wonwoo’s hair. He’d never kissed anyone at a cemetery before. He could feel the hazy pleasure between them, but part of his mind was still focused on the bodies under the ground, like his power couldn’t be turned off so close to the truly dead. It was a little strange, how his power could focus on one thing while his mind went blank as Taeyong slid his tongue into his mouth. He gripped Taeyong’s coat and pulled him closer.

When they separated, a sharp gust of wind hit Wonwoo against his back and he pulled Taeyong toward him like he needed shielding from the cold. He felt his face heat up just a little and put a little more space between them.

“We should probably head back. The weather is going to get bad soon,” he said. The air was getting colder. Each breath he took started to hurt and he had to fight the urge to cough on every inhale.

Taeyong nodded. He took his hands out of Wonwoo’s hair and tucked them into his coat pockets.

Wonwoo cranked the heat up as high as it would go once he started the car. He hadn’t brought gloves and his hands were starting to suffer for it.

He couldn’t stop staring at Taeyong’s hands and his curiosity finally got the best of him.

“You’re hands look really cold. Are you okay?”

“I’m a vampire, remember? I can’t feel cold.” He smirked and flexed his fingers. “I think it’s because I haven’t been one for long. My body still reacts like a human sometimes. My hands get red when they’re too hot or too cold, but I can’t feel it.”

Wonwoo turned in the driver’s seat so he could face Taeyong and sandwiched his hands with his own. They were freezing. He ignored the way his own hands stung and held tight.

“Just because you’re a vampire doesn’t mean you should ignore things like this. What if you lose your fingers?”

Taeyong stared a little dazedly at their overlapped hands.

“I’ll be fine once I — never mind,” he said quickly, slipping his hands out from between Wonwoo’s so he could interlock their fingers. “I’ll be fine, I promise. Why don’t you ask me about something more interesting.”

Wonwoo sighed. He’d let it go for now, but he tucked his curiosity away for later. He rubbed his thumb against Taeyong’s and stared at their hands.

“What’s your city like? Tell me about the people that you’re protecting.”

Taeyong was quiet for a few heartbeats, and Wonwoo worried that he’d asked something he wasn’t supposed to.

“They’re my family,” Taeyong said so quietly Wonwoo almost didn’t hear it. He squeezed Taeyong’s hand in reassurance.

“You don’t have to say anything if you don’t want to.”

Taeyong shook his head quickly. “No, I want to.”

Wonwoo kept rubbing Taeyong’s hand and he continued.

“For about a year after I was turned, it was just me and Yuta. Once I stepped into the role of Master of the City, I met the others. First was Johnny and Taeil. I met the leopard Alpha Ten, and his second Sicheng. The wolves came after that. Jaehyun is the Alpha, and Doyoung keeps the pack in line.” He sighed like a weight was lodged in his chest. “We’re all pretty new at this. The old leadership in my city was taken out in one night and we had to pick up the pieces. I’m lucky we all get along. Well, as much as vampires and lycanthropes _can_ get along.”

Something tingled up Wonwoo’s spine.

“Everyone was killed at once?”

Taeyong nodded. He shivered just a bit, just enough that it caught Wonwoo’s attention.

“That’s why I have to be careful. I have to do anything in my power to keep my family safe. What happened before…I can’t let that happen to the people I care about.”

His fingers tightened against Wonwoo’s hand. Taeyong’s eyes went hard, determination changing his features into the Master that had first walked into Jun’s meeting room.

It made something snap inside him and he crashed their lips together again.

Taeyong made a surprised noise in the back of his throat but separated their hands so he could cup the back of Wonwoo’s neck.

Taeyong’s lips were cold but Wonwoo didn’t mind. He moved as close as the middle console would allow him, his hand in Taeyong’s hair. Taeyong’s tongue swiped against his bottom lip, hot and teasing, before he pulled back. His eyes were half lidded as he pulled Wonwoo bodily across the car and into his lap.

Wonwoo felt the solid line of Taeyong’s body against his, felt the otherworldly strength like it was a pulsing thing just beneath his skin. He wrapped his hands against the cool skin of Taeyong’s neck, and that was when it clicked.

Taeyong leaned forward to kiss him again but Wonwoo stopped him with a hand to his chest.

“You’re cold because you haven’t fed,” he said plainly. Taeyong smirked.

“I should have known you’d figure it out sooner or later. No. I haven’t fed, and as I’m sure you know, I can’t feed until I go home. Not unless it’s from one of my people.”

Wonwoo stared at him with wide eyes. “Is that like a rule or something?”

Taeyong scoffed. “It’s like basic vampire etiquette. Feeding on anyone in Junhui’s territory is a sign of disrespect.”

He moved his hand underneath Wonwoo’s coat, and Wonwoo shivered as his hand touched his skin.

“The problem,” Taeyong said with a playful smile, “is that I can’t drink from anyone I brought with me either. I’ll just have to endure until this is all over. It’s not a big deal as long as I don’t get injured.”

Wonwoo trembled as Taeyong’s hand crept further up his skin. He leaned forward and pressed their lips together again.

Taeyong was interesting. He was so many things at once, and while most people were, something about his many sides held Wonwoo’s attention like spotting a cat across a field.

“I’d let you,” he said, his voice low against Taeyong’s lips. “If you asked, I’d let you.”

Taeyong groaned and pulled him impossibly closer, the hand under his shirt pressing insistently at his back. He mouthed at the skin under Wonwoo’s jaw, kissing a line down to his neck.

“Junhui wouldn’t hesitate to tear me to pieces if I even considered it,” he said, gritty and rough against his pulse point.

Wonwoo rolled his hips against the boy underneath him and Taeyong groaned and set his teeth against his skin. It was like a feedback loop: Wonwoo reacting to the pressure of Taeyong’s fangs and Taeyong reacting to the way Wonwoo slowly came undone above him.

He licked a hot stripe against his skin and Wonwoo shuddered before finally pulling Taeyong’s head away and kissing him.

Wonwoo lost track of how long they sat in his slowly warming car, hands mapping bodies, lips and tongues meeting again and again. He could feel the outline of Taeyong’s dick against him and it took every ounce of his self-control to not slide down the seat and wrap his lips around the vampire.

It was like Taeyong read his mind. He pulled back and nosed against his neck, breathing a little heavily against his skin.

“We aren’t fucking in your car no matter how nicely you ask.”

Wonwoo smirked and rolled his hips against Taeyong who gripped his waist and moaned openly.

“I _do_ have to drive you back to your hotel, you know. I could just come up with you.”

Taeyong’s hands slid down his thighs in a way that had Wonwoo feeling hot and desperate. He mouthed at the skin of Taeyong’s neck and grinned when the vampire shivered against him.

“You don’t think it’s too soon? This is only the second time we’ve been alone.”

It was then that Wonwoo noticed the blinding white out of the corner of his eye. He’d kind of forgotten about the weather.

“Shit,” he murmured, pulling out of Taeyong’s hands with a sigh. “We really do have to go. I almost can’t see the road.”

Taeyong gave him a dramatic pout as he maneuvered his way back into the driver’s seat. Wonwoo reached for his hand apologetically as he shifted the car into gear and started the careful drive back to Taeyong’s hotel.

A thrilling kind of tension filled the car, hot with the promise of whatever was coming next. Wonwoo played with Taeyong’s much warmer fingers absently as he concentrated on getting them where they needed to go without sliding into a ditch.

It took twice as long to get back, but when Wonwoo parked in front of Taeyong’s hotel the vampire pulled him hard against the center console and kissed him like he’d die without tasting him. He let Taeyong’s tongue trace his mouth, let him nip at his bottom lip, fangs just grazing the soft skin, before pulling back and searching his face.

“Am I going up with you?” he asked, trying his best to calm his frantic heart.

Taeyong gave him one more kiss before sighing and running a hand through his hair.

“I want to say yes so bad. God all I can think about is making a mess out of you, but I have a conference call tonight with some people in my city that I can’t miss.” Taeyong took Wonwoo’s hand and placed it on his chest, let him feel the frantic beating of his heart that almost mirrored his own. “I’ll text you again soon, okay? We can do anything you want, and I mean _anything_ , the next time we see each other.”

Wonwoo moved his hand up Taeyong’s chest to the back of his neck and pulled him in for a scorching kiss.

“I’ll look forward to it,” he said as he pulled back.

Wonwoo slumped back against the driver’s seat as Taeyong stepped out and headed for the main entrance. He turned back when he was almost inside, and he gave Wonwoo a strange look, like he was torn between something much bigger than just letting him come upstairs.

He waited until Taeyong was out of sight before putting his car back in gear and heading home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goth cemetery date...love that for me :D


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **TW: DISCUSSIONS OF THE DEATH OF A SINGER**. This chapter talks about Seungcheol's past and the death of a singer (in this case I'm referring to Kurt Cobain, lead singer of the Grunge band Nirvana).
> 
> PLEASE DO NOT FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE TO READ THIS CHAPTER IF THIS CONTENT WILL TRIGGER YOU!!! There's just some Feelings and Seungcheol's past so....as far as the main plot is concerned you can skip this and not be lost!! 
> 
> If you want to read the chapter but avoid this content, when you get to "You know, 1994" please ctl+f and search "not yet, but soon."

A few nights later, as the moon grew more full in the cold winter sky, crystals still tucked under his pillow, Wonwoo dreamed.

He saw Seungcheol, back in flannel and ripped jeans, hair platinum blonde. He was sitting in a college dorm room, posters taped up on the walls, an old Walkman on his night stand. There were tapes with the names of bands Wonwoo had never heard of scattered all over the room.

He watched Seungcheol put a tape in the Walkman and slide his headphones on, and it was like he went somewhere far away. Wonwoo wondered if Seungcheol knew what they were saying or if the songs just spoke to something inside of him. The music was loud enough that he could hear it through the headphones, all gruff voices and harsh guitars, English words he could only make out every few lines. It was like each song was screaming at this hollow place inside, desperate to feel anything, desperate to be heard and seen and felt.

Another boy walked into the dorm, sandy brown hair and green eyes and the same ripped jeans and flannel. Seungcheol opened his eyes and when he saw the boy he sat up with that flirty smile he used when he wanted to charm someone.

“I just got this in the mail today. Let me know what you think,” the boy said as he passed Seungcheol another tape. The tape cover was cream with some kind of angel on the front, flesh cut away to reveal the organs underneath.

Seungcheol grinned and wasted no time slipping the tape into his Walkman.

When the first chords drifted from Seungcheol’s headphones to Wonwoo’s ears, his whole body broke out in chills. He’d never heard anything like it before. Seungcheol’s eyes fluttered closed and he flopped back against the bed, the other boy completely forgotten.

The scene faded away and Wonwoo saw Seungcheol clutching a woman’s hand in a hospital bed. He couldn’t hear what she whispered to him before her eyes slipped closed, but his heart squeezed as Seungcheol clutched her hand like a life line. Outside the dimly lit room, Wonwoo heard something shatter and a scream that sounded more animal than human. The door banged open and Seungcheol turned toward the noise, but the scene faded away before Wonwoo could see who it was.

The next thing Wonwoo saw was blood. It dripped in a sluggish line down Seungcheol’s lip and into a white sink. He wasn’t in a dorm this time, but in a house bathroom. Wonwoo heard the sound of bottles clinking and a low muttering voice. Seungcheol looked tired, like he hadn’t slept in weeks. Maybe even months. His hair was showing black roots, the dark circles under his eyes harsh.

A man slammed the bathroom door open.

“You might be a man, Seungcheol, but you’re living in my house. You don’t get to act like this. _No son of mine will act like this_!”

Seungcheol’s eyes hardened as he turned to face his father.

“I’m the one working my ass off so you can live, Dad! I need to go back to school! I’m a semester behind now! When will you go back to work and stop drinking your life away? Mom is _dead —_ ” A heavy hand to the cheek cut off whatever else Seungcheol was going to say.

“Ever since you went away to school, you’ve been different, boy. You started listening to that foreign music, hanging out with that foreign boy, bleaching your hair like some delinquent. It’s not _right_. I won’t tolerate this. Not in my house.” Seungcheol’s father turned away. “Either clean up your act or get out.”

Seungcheol slammed the door and locked it tight behind him. His eyes squeezed shut as he slid to the floor, cradling his face in his hands. Little drops of blood leaked from between his fingers and onto the off white tile of the floor.

Wonwoo felt strange, like he was watching a horror movie. He wanted to keep watching, but another part of him didn’t want to see what was next.

The scene faded and changed. Cicadas droned outside, and Seungcheol sat in a boy’s lap, the same boy from his college dorm room, kissing him like he would die if he didn’t. He was wearing the same clothes he’d worn the first time Wonwoo had dreamed about him all those months ago, and it made something heavy lodge in his throat.

“I don’t want you to go,” Seungcheol whispered against his lips, and the boy wrapped his arms around him and squeezed him tight.

“When you graduate, come find me. I’ll send you a letter with my phone number as soon as I get a place. I promise.”

The boy looked at Seungcheol like he was precious, and a part of Wonwoo was relieved to know that Seungcheol had had something like that when it seemed like he didn’t have a lot.

The sound of the front door slamming rattled Seungcheol’s door frame, and he scrambled off the boy’s lap as the color drained from his face.

“You need to leave,” Seungcheol said in a whisper, like the words scratched painfully against his throat, “If he knows you’re here —”

Wonwoo’s stomach sunk into the floor.

He knew what Seungcheol had left out, had seen it already and he prayed to anyone listening that he wouldn’t have to see any more.

The dream had mercy on him, thankfully, and the last thing he saw before the scene faded away was the American boy running out of Seungcheol’s room, past his father who didn’t spare him a glance, eyes hard and cold as he strode toward Seungcheol.

_Did you see what you were looking for?_

It was like the voice had spoken right in his ear, and Wonwoo woke up with a gasp. He pulled the covers tight against his chest and shivered.

Seungcheol was in bed next to him, on his side and hugging a pillow tight to his chest. He said it was the only way he could fall asleep. Wonwoo moved closer to him, wrapped himself as much around Seungcheol as he could, and as pointless as it was with the sound of birds chirping through his light tight window he sent wave after wave of comfort through their connection.

He wanted Seungcheol to feel it.

He needed Seungcheol to feel it.

 

 

 

*******

 

 

 

It took a few days before Wonwoo was able to sit down with Seungcheol. They’d both been slammed with work. Most of his work was phone consults, thankfully. He was leery about going to the cemetery. He still wasn’t sure if his powers were working correctly, and honestly, he was a little scared to find out. Getting the zombie back in the ground had been challenging enough. He didn’t want to know how challenging the next problem might be.

Seungcheol was behind on paperwork for White Noise. Meetings with Jun about their guests had taken up most of his time, so he’d been making up for it by staying at the bar until almost dawn each night just to catch things up.

Wonwoo woke up when Seungcheol slid under the blankets next to him, the chill from outside seeping into his warm cocoon. He blinked a few times before turning on his side to face the vampire.

“I didn’t mean to wake you up,” Seungcheol said softly as he ran his hand through Wonwoo’s hair.

“It’s okay. I wanted to talk to you any way.”

Wonwoo moved closer and tangled his legs with Seungcheol’s, hissing a little at the chill. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and took a breath. Seungcheol glanced at him with tightly masked concern. Wonwoo couldn’t blame him. His face probably did look serious.

“I had another dream about you,” Wonwoo started, and as much as he wanted to keep his eyes locked with Seungcheol’s he lost his nerve quickly, his eyes moving to his shoulder. “You never told me that so much happened to you before you were turned.”

Seungcheol’s hands traced little circles on his back. “It’s not that I didn’t want to tell you. It’s just…that was just how things were for me back then. I didn’t know any different. I mean, I used a cassette player to listen to music and I never even knew something like the internet was possible. I wrote my friends letters and called people on a pay phone.”

Wonwoo fought against his every instinct to peek inside Seungcheol’s tight shields.

He just wanted Seungcheol to be okay.

“You act like I wasn’t born in the 90s,” he grumbled and Seungcheol snorted.

“I was 22 when you were born. The things we remember about the 90s are very different, I’m sure.”

Seungcheol had been hurt for a long time. Wonwoo shuddered when he imagined the nights Seungcheol spent alone after he was turned, the years he’d spent mending the things that must have shattered inside of him.

“I just have two questions and then we don’t have to talk about it ever again if you don’t want to.”

Seungcheol nodded, and Wonwoo forced his head up to meet his eyes.

“Is your dad still alive?”

Seungcheol’s face went from anger to fear to hurt before he locked it all away. His hands stilled on Wonwoo’s back and he was quiet for a long time, his eyes trained on something Wonwoo couldn’t see.

“He must be. I’m still listed as his son so I’d be notified if something happened to him. I haven’t seen him or talked to him in 20 years and I don’t plan to.”

Wonwoo moved Seungcheol’s hand off his back to link their fingers together.

Seungcheol shut his eyes for a moment and sighed.

“What did you see? In your dream, how much did you see?”

Wonwoo squeezed Seungcheol’s hand.

“Enough.”

Seungcheol looked down at their intertwined fingers. He brought Wonwoo’s hand to his mouth and kissed each knuckle.

 

 

“You know, 1994 was the best and worst year of my life. My mom died and the lead singer of my favorite band died within two months of each other. You’d think that losing my mom would have been harder, but I knew for months that she was terminal.” Seungcheol spoke against the back of Wonwoo’s hand, his voice soft and far away. “When the news came that he died, I locked myself in my room for two days. I don’t think I’ve ever cried so much before or since. I used a paper dictionary and translated every lyric line by line. It didn’t matter that I couldn’t understand what he said right away. It was like every single word, every guitar chord filled something inside of me that I didn’t even know was empty. When he died…that was when I really lost everything.”

Wonwoo pulled Seungcheol closer and tucked the vampire against his chest. He felt that word swell up in his heart, fill every cell in his body and god he wanted to say it, but he kept his shields up as tight as he could make them.

 

 

 

 

Not yet, but soon.

 

 

 

 

“You were really dedicated. I can’t imagine not being able to just search the internet for translations.”

He felt Seungcheol smile against his hand and Wonwoo’s heart gave a hard thud.

“What’s the other question?” Seungcheol asked as he separated their hands to play with Wonwoo’s hair.

“Did you ever try to find him? The American boy?”

Seungcheol smiled, a soft delicate thing, and shook his head.

“I thought about it. The first few years after I was turned I thought about it all the time. ‘I can just run away from my Maker and go find him. I don’t even need an address. If I go there we’ll definitely meet each other.’ But I couldn’t. The longer I waited the more I realized that it’s better this way. It’s better that he’s just a memory.”

“What’s his name?” Wonwoo asked, the words slipping out before he had time to think. Seungcheol stroked his hand across his cheek with a smirk that almost looked normal.

“That’s three questions, and you said I only had to answer two.”

Wonwoo gave an exasperated sigh and pulled Seungcheol in for a kiss.

Seungcheol wasn’t hurting anymore, at least not continuously. It seemed similar to how Wonwoo felt about his parents. It stung like a phantom pain, but it didn’t hurt enough to affect him all the time.

Wonwoo kissed every one of those four letters pumping through his veins right into Seungcheol, and Seungcheol sighed against his lips and wrapped strong arms around him.

Wonwoo broke the kiss to yawn and Seungcheol smiled, pulling Wonwoo against his chest.

He was almost asleep when he heard Seungcheol whisper into the stillness of near dawn.

“Jason.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> grunge Seungcheol is something I will never let go of :D We're getting closer to the end which is just crazy!! Thanks for sticking with me I love you all so much <33333


	13. Chapter 13

Wonwoo was in the hotel bar again. The nerves were different this time, a heady kind of excitement buzzing through his veins as he stirred his drink absentmindedly.

 _I need to see you tonight_.

He woke up to a six word text message from Taeyong that sent a jolt of heat through his whole body.

He felt the air around him change when Taeil slid into the seat in front of him, and it was so similar to the first time he’d been at the hotel it gave him a strange sense of déjà vu. Their powers brushed up against each other in greeting like old friends.

“And here I thought you and Taeyong were making progress,” Taeil said with an expression that was almost a smirk, “Are you two still dancing around each other?”

Wonwoo sighed but the corner of his mouth quirked up in spite of himself.

“I know it looks the same, but the reason I’m down here is different.”

Taeil stared at him for a long time, like he was seeing inside Wonwoo’s head, assessing each thought that ran though his mind before he finally nodded.

“I came down here because I want to help you. I brought something that’s guaranteed to work.”

Taeil gave him an infectious, warm smile and reached into his hoodie. He pulled a velvet bag from his pocket and took out a worn deck of cards.

“Tarot?” Wonwoo couldn’t keep the curiosity out of his voice.

Taeil put the deck between Wonwoo’s hands, giving them a squeeze before he pulled back.

“I’ll do a three card draw. Concentrate on a question you have or a problem you’d like more insight on.”

Wonwoo felt mildly that he was having an out of body experience. He was sitting in a hotel bar getting a tarot reading from a witch because he was nervous about going upstairs to see an attractive Master Vampire. It seemed like a dream. Like a really bizarre dream.

The only thing Wonwoo could think about was Taeyong. His blood red hair, his intense eyes, his soft, soft smile. _What is going on with Taeyong? What’s the truth here?_

After a few minutes of silence Taeil took the deck from his hands and shuffled the cards a few times. They were so worn they folded easily.

“You must do this a lot,” Wonwoo said, eyes fixed on the cards flying expertly under Taeil’s fingers.

“I run a shop back home. I do readings, but I also sell crystals and herbs and enchanted water. If you ever come to the city you should stop by. It’s called Smoke, which wasn’t really a smart name for an occult shop.” Taeil laughed and his nose crinkled. “I get a lot of kids asking me about cigarettes and weed. I suppose I could change it, but I’m kind of attached to it now.”

“I should thank you for the crystals. I’ve had a lot of dreams that have been really insightful and I have a feeling it’s because of you,” Wonwoo said.

Taeil grinned, his eyes bright.

“Labradorite is said to increase psychic powers. Sugilite helps with visions and can provide hidden knowledge. I hoped the two of them together would help you see what needed to be seen. I’ll have to send you some instructions on how to cleanse and charge them so you can continue to use them effectively.”

Taeil moved the cards until they were in a tight deck again, shut his eyes and took a deep breath. He said something under his breath, words too quiet for Wonwoo to hear, then opened his eyes and pulled three cards from the top of the deck. He set them in a line in front of Wonwoo.

Taeil started from Wonwoo’s left.

“The Page of Cups. You’ve recently had a surprise or new opportunity come into your life. You should trust your intuition on this, but also be open to what the universe is trying to tell you.”

Taeil’s finger hovered over the next card. It was upside down, and Wonwoo’s limited knowledge of tarot was just enough to know that meant it had a different meaning.

“The Knight of Swords. Upside down like this, it means that you’re very restless and burnt out. You want to act on something, but you’re feeling held back somehow. Slow down and don’t be impulsive or the people around you will suffer. Take some time to ground yourself and focus on the things that are important to you.”

Wonwoo felt strange. He had magic, and he believed in magical ability. He’d seen Mingyu do all sorts of things with his psychic abilities, but every single time magic was done on him it left him feeling restless but excited. Taeil moved on to the last card.

“The Four of Pentacles. You’re seeking control in your life. You’re feeling protective of the people that you love. You want to make sure that no one can threaten what you’ve built. You’re resisting change, and you want to play it safe right now.” Taeil sighed. “The things that you’re afraid of. I understand, Wonwoo. It’s all going to work out in the end. This is a good reading.”

It was all true.

Taeil barely knew him, but he’d read the past few weeks of his life like a book. It was kind of amazing.

“How did you know all that?” Wonwoo asked a little dazedly.

Taeil smiled but it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“It’s just what the cards tell me. It’s nothing special and it’s not always perfect. I do mess up sometimes, especially with more complex magic, but I really hope that this helps you.”

Wonwoo felt a twist of pity in his gut. Taeil reminded him a lot of Mingyu, a lot of himself. Magic was a strange, difficult thing. Even people who studied their entire lives couldn’t call themselves masters. It was the same for him, too. Raising the dead had proven tricky for Wonwoo his past few cases. Magic was just unpredictable. Good intentions and practice weren’t always enough.

Wonwoo was quiet for a long time. His deep desire to protect the people he cared about, his fear of changing what he had with Seungcheol and Jun, his desire to be with Taeyong was all out in the open plain to see because of three little cards.

After a while he looked up from the swirling amber of his drink and met Taeil’s eyes.

“It’s someone that’s here with you, isn’t it? The man you’re in love with?”

Taeil’s eyes went wide, his smile dimming down to blankness. “How did you know he was here?”

Wonwoo shrugged. “You should tell him. Things will work out better than you think.”

Taeil sighed as he placed his cards back in their bag.

“I want to believe you, Wonwoo, but I’ll have to wait until we all go home. If I say something now everything will be lost.”

His face whipped toward the door and he turned back to Wonwoo with a gentle smile. Taeil was like the last breeze before autumn hit. Warm but somehow sad.

“I should go so you can get on with what you came here for. Don’t forget what I told you, and remember that no matter what I’m always ready to help you with your magic.”

Taeil didn’t walk out of the room. It was like he shimmered out of existence, like a mirage. Like he’d never been there at all.

Maybe it really _was_ just a weird dream.

He sighed and stood up, leaving most of his drink untouched as he headed out of the bar and toward the elevator.

 

 

 

 

 

***

 

 

 

 

 

The second time Wonwoo walked into Room 708 he was met with Taeyong pacing a tight line between the bed and the desk, biting at his thumb nail with a far-away look. When he heard the door click shut, he jumped and dropped his hand from his mouth, looking at Wonwoo with something like relief.

“I didn’t mean to be so late,” Wonwoo said sheepishly, his eyes moving from Taeyong to the carpet. He took off his shoes as Taeyong padded closer.

“It’s not you, don’t worry. It’s just,” Taeyong started, sighing heavily as he sat on the bed, “I have midterms soon and there’s a lot of stuff going on back in the city. There’s so much to do and there’s not enough time.”

Wonwoo slipped out of his coat and tossed it on an empty chair. He walked further into the room and sat next to Taeyong on the bed.

“Being Master of the City seems like more trouble than it’s worth,” Wonwoo said, his voice soft as he took in Taeyong’s appearance. His hands were red and raw, the skin next to his thumb just starting to bleed. He looked like he hadn’t been sleeping or resting or whatever vampires did during the day.

Wonwoo’s heart ached when he looked at Taeyong, and while a part of him knew that the vampire couldn’t be completely trusted, another part of him just wanted to take away what was bothering him.

“I know you said last time that we could do whatever I wanted, but if you want to rest that’s okay too.”

Taeyong looked at him, eyes scanning his face for a long time. Wonwoo felt his face grow warm from the attention and after a few more moments Taeyong fell back against the sheets. He pulled Wonwoo down with him and they lay there, bodies mirrored in a line from shoulder to hip.

Taeyong’s eyes met his again and he reached out to trace across Wonwoo’s collar bones.

“I want you to take my mind off things for a while. Is that okay?”

Taeyong looked down like he really thought Wonwoo might say no, like he was prepared for rejection.

Wonwoo’s mouth pulled into a smirk and he pressed just a bit closer to the vampire. He tilted Taeyong’s face up with a finger.

“I’m only good at one kind of distraction. Is that what you want?”

Taeyong’s eyes kept drifting to his lips and a warm tension spread through his chest. He waited and when Taeyong gave a small nod he wrapped his hands around the back of Taeyong’s neck and pulled him in for a kiss, their bodies pressing flush together. Taeyong sighed and practically melted against him.

Taeyong’s lips were soft but cool against his, his hands trailing down Wonwoo’s chest like he was trying to touch all of him as fast as he could. It made Wonwoo press his thigh between Taeyong’s knees. He wasn’t expecting Taeyong to be half hard already or the desperate whine he let out when they broke apart.

Wonwoo kissed his way down Taeyong’s jaw. Each sound Taeyong made zipped through his racing heart straight to his groin. His hands slipped under Wonwoo’s shirt and they were freezing but Wonwoo couldn’t care, not when the contact made Taeyong’s breath hitch.

“What do you want, Taeyong?” Wonwoo asked.

Taeyong looked at him with a heat that edged on desperate. “Fuck me so I don’t have to think anymore.”

Wonwoo groaned, moving until he was above the vampire. He slipped Taeyong’s shirt over his head and his eyes raked down Taeyong’s bare torso. He was beautiful, all soft skin and lithe muscle. It made Wonwoo’s whole body go hot with arousal.

Taeyong’s face pinked at the attention and that made a different kind of thrill course through Wonwoo’s veins.

“You too,” Taeyong breathed out, his hands finding their way under Wonwoo’s shirt again and sliding it up his body. He was quick to oblige, pulling his shirt over his head and tossing it away. Taeyong looked at him with the same kind of hunger and Wonwoo felt his heart speed up.

“I didn’t think you’d look so muscular,” Taeyong murmured and Wonwoo couldn’t keep the laugh that bubbled up inside.

“What?” Taeyong pouted. “The way you dress hides what a good body you have.”

Wonwoo’s laugh faded away and he looked down at Taeyong with the ghost of the smile still on his lips.

“You’re kind of the same. It’s not like you’re showing off either.”

Taeyong’s face went pink again and Wonwoo leaned down to kiss him. It turned heated in no time. His tongue slipped into Taeyong’s mouth and he pressed his hips down without thinking. Taeyong went boneless beneath him and keened.

“ _Please —”_ he gasped, the word getting cut off in a moan when Wonwoo ground his hips down again.

God. Taeyong was already so desperate and it was so _hot_ he felt like he couldn’t think. He kissed his way down Taeyong’s skin, not stopping until he’d reached his jeans.

Wonwoo looked up at Taeyong through his lashes and felt a little pride at the way Taeyong met his eyes and immediately looked at the ceiling with a helpless sound.

Wonwoo traced the outline of Taeyong’s cock with his fingers before pressing his hand against him. Taeyong sucked in a breath and canted his hips into the friction. He was sensitive, too. It was unbelievably hot.

He had Taeyong’s pants half way down his thighs before Taeyong looked at him again. He was pink from his face down to his chest, breathing quick and shallow even though he didn’t need to. He looked at Wonwoo’s lips and sat up to kiss him again.

Wonwoo tried to multitask, did his best to get Taeyong’s pants off but he lost focus the moment Taeyong’s fangs grazed his lip. He moaned between them, his hands coming to steady himself on Taeyong’s shoulders. Taeyong kicked his pants the rest of the way off and Wonwoo broke the kiss to look down at his body.

Wonwoo was so turned on, _god_ , he had to look at the ceiling for a minute to steady himself. Taeyong took the opportunity to work his pants open.

“I want to see you, too,” he said, his voice strained with arousal. Wonwoo nodded too quickly. He moved off Taeyong long enough to peel off his clothes, and when he was naked Taeyong pulled him onto his knees and kissed his stomach. His mouth trailed down, lower and lower until he was level with Wonwoo’s half hard dick.

He licked his lips and Wonwoo sucked in a breath. It was the most tension he’d felt since they’d started, and it ended with Taeyong burying his face right next to his cock with a helpless whine. Wonwoo’s hips stuttered forward and he looked down a little sheepishly at Taeyong who was too busy kissing his way up to Wonwoo’s hip to notice.

His teeth grazed at his hip, sending hot need through him and his hand ended up in Taeyong’s blood red hair.

“Do you want to bite me?” he asked, his voice rougher than he meant it to be. He felt like he’d been punched, breathless and aching.

Taeyong moaned almost helplessly against Wonwoo’s skin as he carded his hand through the vampire’s hair.

“I said I’d let you, didn’t I? You can bite me. God, I _want_ you to bite me.”

Taeyong’s nose was in the crease of his thigh. He was breathing hard and when he pulled back his pupils were blown, his eyes almost black.

“Junhui will kill me.”

Wonwoo was impressed at the amount of self-control Taeyong had. It made him want to see how far he could push before Taeyong broke.

He’d save it for later.

“I won’t let him. Please, Taeyong, god _please_ bite me,” Wonwoo said, not hiding the need that seeped out with his words.

Taeyong’s breath was hot against his skin. He planted a soft kiss to Wonwoo’s inner thigh, and he looked up for one more encouraging nod from Wonwoo before he finally, finally bit down.

Taeyong’s bite was different. It was the tiniest pinprick of pain. Maybe it was because of the tender place Taeyong bit him but he hissed just a little at the feeling. Taeyong keened against him, his hands sliding up Wonwoo’s thighs and hips and waist, and that was when the pleasure set in. Wonwoo kept petting Taeyong’s hair as he drank, his cock twitching pitifully at how close Taeyong’s mouth was and how his attention was on his blood instead. It was one of the hottest things Wonwoo had ever seen.

Taeyong didn’t take much before he pulled back and met Wonwoo’s eyes, his lips red as he licked over the bite. Wonwoo’s breath was caught in his throat, his cock straining, his skin hot all over. He was pretty sure if Taeyong kept looking at him like that, all half-lidded eyes and parted lips, he could come without a single touch.

Taeyong wrapped his bloodstained mouth around Wonwoo’s dick and it was so much that he had to brace his hands on Taeyong’s shoulders to keep from falling backward. His mouth was so hot and the fact that it was his _blood_ making things so slick sent arousal through him like lightning.

Taeyong slid down as far as he could, wrapping his hand around what wouldn’t fit in his mouth and  bobbing his head to meet his hand a few times. He took his mouth off Wonwoo just so he could look up at him and bite his lip as his hand teased at the head of his cock.

Wonwoo’s hips jerked forward and he bit back a moan. Taeyong looked too good like that, starting up at Wonwoo as he licked long and slow over his cock.

Wonwoo finally pushed Taeyong back by his shoulders until he fell against the mattress. Taeyong’s face was still dusted pink, pupils wide and the corner of his mouth quirked up in a knowing smirk.

“You like getting bitten,” Taeyong said, looking Wonwoo up and down like he was seeing him for the first time.

Wonwoo settled on top of him again and held his gaze as he touched his tongue to Taeyong’s bottom lip. He could taste his blood and he didn’t hide the effect it had on him, rolling his hips and letting out a low noise when their erections brushed together.

Taeyong looked almost shocked. Wonwoo kissed the corner of his mouth and sat up.

“Do you have anything with you?”

Taeyong blinked like he was coming out of a daze before nodding. He reached under the pillow to his right and pulled out a small bottle of lube.

“You think I’d ask you to fuck me and not be prepared?” Taeyong asked, a teasing lilt to his voice.

Wonwoo took it from Taeyong’s hands and moved between his legs.

When he finally got to take in Taeyong spread out against the sheets, a part of his brain definitely short circuited.

“You’re really…beautiful,” Wonwoo said, his voice soft as he opened the cap.

Taeyong looked up at the ceiling, like Wonwoo complimenting him was somehow more embarrassing than being naked in front of him.

Wonwoo coated his fingers and took Taeyong’s gorgeous cock in his hand, giving him a slow stroke that had his hips canting off the bed, chasing the friction. He moaned but threw his hand over his mouth, muffling the sound in a way that had Wonwoo feeling dizzy with arousal.

Wonwoo kept a slow pace on his cock as he traced a finger around Taeyong’s rim. Taeyong whimpered into his hand and spread his legs a fraction wider.

“So needy,” Wonwoo grated out, sliding his finger inside as he spoke. Taeyong’s hand came away then, curling in the sheets as he moaned. Wonwoo thrust inside, matching the pace of his hand still wrapped around Taeyong’s cock.

Taeyong was all tight heat and breathy moans and it took all of Wonwoo’s self-control to keep the pace slow, to work Taeyong open nice and easy. He added a second finger, waiting until Taeyong was rolling his hips back against his hand before thrusting faster. Taeyong’s hand left the sheet and gripped the hand around his cock, squeezing with a gasp.

“If you don’t stop I’ll —” he gasped out, and Wonwoo stilled the hand on his cock but thrust a little harder into Taeyong’s body just to watch the way his eyes fluttered shut and his back arch prettily off the bed.

Wonwoo teased the tip of a third finger inside and Taeyong threw an arm over his eyes. He was moaning on every exhale and his thighs started to shake as Wonwoo eased all three fingers into him. He had to take his hand off Taeyong’s cock to squeeze the base of his own aching dick.

Taeyong was a lot. Every half-lidded gaze and punched out moan hit Wonwoo like a ton of bricks. He took a deep, steadying breath and worked his fingers deeper, curling them up until he found what he was looking for. When his fingers glided past Taeyong’s prostate his mouth opened in a soundless moan and his thighs closed around Wonwoo’s arm like he couldn’t decide if he wanted to keep Wonwoo closer or push him away.

“Fuck _please_ just get inside me,” Taeyong whined, his voice raw and wrecked.

Wonwoo pressed into his prostate one more time before pulling out. He had to search around for the lube but was quick to slick himself up, pressing Taeyong’s legs back against his body. God he was so _flexible_.

Wonwoo was absolutely done for.

He eased in slowly, his eyes locked on Taeyong’s face. Taeyong bit his lip as his head hit the pillow, his breathing steady and deep.

Once he bottomed out he ran his hands soothingly along Taeyong’s waist as he adjusted to the feeling of Wonwoo inside of him.

“Kiss me. Please,” Taeyong said softly, and Wonwoo leaned down to connect their lips. After that it was a tangle of tongues and hands, the taste of his blood still lingering in Taeyong’s mouth. It didn’t take long before Taeyong was rolling his hips slowly, little sighs escaping between their lips.

Wonwoo kissed the corner of Taeyong’s mouth and propped his weight on his hands, easing himself out of Taeyong before thrusting slowly back in.

“ _Please —_ ”

Taeyong was matching his thrusts and it was already too much, had probably been too much since Taeyong had bitten into his thigh. Wonwoo was desperate to come, desperate for that pleasure to course through both of them, and as he picked up the pace he thrust a little harder. Taeyong gasped and at first Wonwoo thought he’d hurt him, but Taeyong rasped out _more god faster please_ and Wonwoo buried his face in Taeyong’s neck and did what Taeyong wanted.

He knew Taeyong was close by the way his cock oozed precum between their bodies, the way his thighs started to shake against Wonwoo’s hips. It was there, in the crook of Taeyong’s neck that he said it.

“Bite me. Please Taeyong please _please —_ ” Wonwoo didn’t care how desperate, how _gone_ he sounded. He just wanted to feel Taeyong’s fangs sink into his skin.

Taeyong moaned, his breath hitching around the sound and as Wonwoo moved his face out of his neck Taeyong bit him just above his collarbone.

He moaned long and loud, his hips working faster and he felt Taeyong shake under him. Taeyong’s mouth came off his skin pretty and red and when he came his eyes fluttered closed. Taeyong’s come coated them as he leaned down and kissed him, and Wonwoo’s orgasm hit him when Taeyong’s tongue curled around his.

It felt like he came for hours, and even after the pleasure ebbed away he kept kissing Taeyong, their bodies slick with blood and come but he couldn’t seem to pull away from his lips.

When they finally broke apart Taeyong was grinning up at him.

“That was…wow,” Taeyong said, and Wonwoo definitely felt a swell of pride at that. He kissed Taeyong’s cheek, the corners of his mouth curling up.

“I hope I kept you occupied for a while. You look like you feel better. I’m glad.”

Wonwoo eased out of Taeyong who groaned and covered his face with his hands.

“I’m so gross. If I don’t get in the shower right now I’ll probably lose my mind.”

Wonwoo rolled away until he was standing at the edge of the bed. He scooped up Taeyong, who let out an embarrassing squeal like he wasn’t used to being carried.

“Do you mind if I join you? I really want to blow you,” Wonwoo said, voice low in Taeyong’s ear.

Taeyong groaned but nodded, his hands looping around Wonwoo’s neck as they headed toward the bathroom.

 

 

 

 

 

***

 

 

 

 

 

Taeyong’s head was on his chest and Wonwoo traced little patterns against his shoulder blades.

“You should leave the city.”

It was so soft Wonwoo was sure he misheard and he tapped Taeyong so the vampire would meet his eyes.

“What did you say?”

Taeyong sighed.

“I said you should leave the city. Come back home with me. I’ve been here long enough to have heard what’s being said. Junhui’s power grows weaker every day.”

Wonwoo felt like he might be having an out of body experience, or maybe Taeyong had taken more blood than he thought.

“That’s not true, Taeyong. Jun isn’t getting weaker. Besides, I can’t just leave the city. I have a job and a life here. It’s not like an animator has hundreds of companies to choose from.”

Taeyong’s hands trailed up his arms and settled on his shoulders.

“You’re biased, but I’ve seen it myself. Junhui isn’t as strong as he used to be. He’s going to be overthrown and it would be safer for you to leave. If people knew your relationship to him —” Taeyong sighed and looked away. “The longer you stay here, the more danger you’re in. Leave with me. We can go tomorrow night.”

Wonwoo was about to sit up but Taeyong picked that moment to move on top of him.

“I can’t leave. I can’t…I just can’t. I hope you don’t think that means I don’t want to see you again,” Wonwoo breathed out. He didn’t understand what Taeyong was saying, not really. Was it because he wanted them to be more than a fling? Long distance wouldn’t be easy, but it wasn’t out of the question if that was what Taeyong wanted.

Taeyong sighed and when Wonwoo met his eyes they were almost glowing, a warm gold that made the inside of his head feel fuzzy. He wanted to sit up so he could clear his head but everything felt so warm, like he was wrapped in a blanket.

The last thing he saw before darkness settled around him was Taeyong’s eyes, glow fading as a single tear slid down his cheek.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy 520 friends <3 Can you believe I actually did a 3 card draw for this and these are the cards I pulled?? Tarot sure is neat :D


	14. Chapter 14

When Wonwoo was seventeen, he went on a class trip. It was pretty standard stuff. They went to the sea, one with a boardwalk and small amusement park, and Wonwoo spent the majority of the trip gazing out at the ocean. It was one of those days where spring hadn’t quite given way to summer and when he sat in the sand it was cool beneath his hands. He lay back, not caring that his hair and clothes would get all sandy. He listened to the sounds of the waves and gulls with his eyes closed, breathing in the soft smell of the sea for a long time.

He must have fallen asleep, because when he opened his eyes, everything looked off somehow. The sky was overcast, a sickly greenish gray. The world was silent, like the ocean stopped moving and the birds had all gone, and Wonwoo sat up with his heart hammering in his chest, looking around him for someone, anyone he recognized.

Surely his classmates wouldn’t have left him? His teacher wouldn’t have forgotten him, right?

His cell phone was in his shaking hand, and he was about to dial his parents when he looked over and saw the school bus they’d all come in on. He ran the entire way to it.

The feeling of being in a strange place, something off about the world around him, had stuck with Wonwoo for a long time.

In fact, he thought he’d gotten over that particular fear until he woke up in a hotel bed to stare at a white ceiling.

Except the bed felt different under him, the ceiling a different shade of white, more textured than the one in Taeyong’s room.

Something seemed off.

It was like being in the hospital all over again, and Wonwoo sat up with his heart hammering and immediately noted the way his hands tugged backwards. He looked down, followed the line of white cord tied tight from his wrists to their end points.

He was tied to the bed frame.

Shit.

He tried to focus on his breathing, on not panicking over being restrained. This wasn’t like last time. This couldn’t be like last time.

He glanced around the room, taking in the small table and chair, the forest green carpet, the scratchy comforter underneath him.

A man was sitting on the bed across from him.

He was familiar somehow. His chestnut hair was fluffy like he’d run his hands through it quite a few times. He was dressed in jeans and dark blue hoodie.

He was one of the men that came with Taeyong. Wonwoo almost relaxed.

“What’s going on exactly?” he asked, forcing his voice to come out even.

The man smiled almost apologetically at him.

“I’m just following orders, man.  Taeyong wants to talk to you once he wakes up. He said you needed some time to think some things over.”

Wonwoo felt like he’d been doused in ice water.

To be fair, maybe he deserved it just a little. He shouldn’t have trusted Taeyong nearly as much as he had.

“I’m really sorry, but I can’t remember your name.”

The man ran a hand through his hair.

“My name is Seo Youngho, but most people call me Johnny.”

Taeyong’s human servant. The man that stood in front of him at the meeting that felt like a lifetime ago.

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He needed to think. Was Taeyong really going to hold him here until he agreed to leave the city with him? Maybe he really didn’t know Taeyong at all. Maybe, every little piece of the vampire he’d been shown was an act. Maybe the _real_ Taeyong was the one in that meeting room, all honey coated poison and icy words.

Wonwoo needed to focus.

He needed information.

“Since I’m going to be here for a while, is it rude of me to ask how you became Taeyong’s human servant?”

Johnny smiled and shook his head.

“It’s a pretty short story. Taeyong and I go way back. We’ve known each other since we were kids. Even when I moved to the States, we stayed in contact. I came back here for college and when he got turned, it was a no brainer.” Johnny’s smile faltered just a bit, dimming out of his eyes. “There was nothing else to do except become his human servant. But we haven’t done the fourth mark yet.”

Johnny slapped a hand over his mouth like he’d said something he shouldn’t have and his eyes went a little wide.

“The fourth mark? That’s the one that makes you immortal right?” Wonwoo asked, hoping to coax a little more information from the man. He didn’t know if anything Johnny told him would really help him, but any information was better than none. He tried to seem harmlessly curious. He hoped it was working.

Johnny relaxed a little and took his hand off his mouth.

“Yeah. That’s the one,” he said, looking down at the carpet with a sigh, “Being immortal is such a big step. There are a few more things I wanna do before I give that up. See, there’s this guy I like —,”

Johnny was interrupted as the door to the room opened and the other vampire from the meeting, the one named Yuta, came in.

Wonwoo shook his head a little. It was too early for the vampires to be awake. He was sure of it. Yet, Yuta was walking over to the little desk, grabbing the chair and pulling it between the beds like he was planning to join them.

He was dressed more casually as well, black pants and a black sweater, ashy blonde hair hanging in front of his eyes.

He looked at Wonwoo’s rope bound wrists and smirked. “It’s a pity Taeyong claimed you, necromancer. You look ravishing with just your hands bound. I can’t even imagine what you’d look like if I got to have some fun with you.”

Wonwoo decided the best course of action was to just ignore that statement altogether.

“How are you awake? If the sun was down, Taeyong would be here,” he said instead, and Yuta’s smirk deepened.

“You could say it’s a trait of my bloodline.” He crossed his legs and rested his head casually in his hand. “My Maker comes from a line of vampires that could walk in daylight or so the legend says.”

“Legend?”

Johnny laughed quietly at him and Yuta’s eyes flicked to him for a moment before he turned to face Wonwoo more directly.

“Legend says that we were all born from one vampire. The Mother, they call her. And the Mother had abilities that modern vampires can only dream of. She made five vampires and each one inherited a powerful ability from her. One could walk in daylight, one could control all types of lycanthropes, one had the power of death, one had the power of lust, and one had the power of fear.”

He leaned forward, easing closer to Wonwoo, and a chill ran up his spine at the way Yuta’s eyes glinted warm and dangerous.

“Technically, all vampires have a watered down version of these five abilities and some have more than one. I’d say the most common is power over lycanthropes, but as you know most vampires can only call and influence one type. I can’t do that, but I get to wake up early. It’s kind of nice.”

Wonwoo’s mind raced, latching almost immediately to vampires with the power of death. Did that mean —

Was there a vampire out there somewhere who could control the dead? Who could _raise_ the dead?

He didn’t have time to focus on it so he tucked it away for later, for when he was back home.

It was a comforting thought, _when_ and not _if_. There was a way out of this, and Wonwoo was going to find it.

He moved as far forward as the rope on his wrists would allow and gazed at Yuta with what he hoped was mild admiration. He seemed like the kind of guy who liked getting his ego stroked, and Wonwoo did his best to feed into it.

“If it’s not too forward, why is it that you’re Taeyong’s Second in Command? You’re older than him, and obviously more powerful. Shouldn’t _you_ be the Master instead?”

Yuta’s eyes went dark, like all the light had been sucked right out of his body. It was so similar to the look his zombies got before they went back in the ground Wonwoo feared for a moment that his power had done something he wasn’t aware of.

“Taeyong is a sweet kid. Too sweet, too trusting. I found him in an alley just before dawn.” Yuta stopped and looked away, a breath shuddering out of him.

“Taeyong didn’t ask to be turned and I’m sure the fucker that attacked him hadn’t meant to turn him either. He was left to die in the street. He kept scratching at his neck, right where the bite was. He was bleeding so much I was sure he’d die before I had time to help him. He wouldn’t speak, wouldn’t even look at me. It took me three days to get him back enough to tell me his name.”

Wonwoo couldn’t keep the shock off his face, and when he eyed Johnny the man was pale, his mouth a thin line. Yuta looked down again before he continued.

“Taeyong is more precious to me than anyone in this world and the only thing that I can do for him is stay by his side. You want to know why Taeyong is the Master and not me. He has something that I don’t.”

“And what’s that?” Wonwoo asked, though he wasn’t sure he really wanted to know the answer.

Yuta’s smile was sad. “An obligation. A debt.”


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short POV switch at the beginning of the chapter!

Seungcheol didn’t bother to knock. He opened the door to Jun’s office without a second thought, and the moment they locked eyes Jun hung up the phone without even saying goodbye.

“Something is wrong. Where’s Wonwoo?”

“The last I heard from him, he was going to see…” Jun started, but when he realized what he was saying the rest of the words faded away.

Seungcheol knew where Wonwoo was, had felt the fear Wonwoo masked with soft reassurance the entire day while he’d been asleep.

“Something is _wrong_ , Junhui,” Seungcheol said as he sat heavily in one of the chairs and buried his face in his hands, “I can feel it. He wants me to think that everything is fine. He’s so fucking _bad_ at shielding. I can feel that he’s got something on his wrists.”

Jun’s fingers tapped against the dark cherry wood of his desk. Seungcheol looked up to see his eyes flick back and forth across the wood, like he was reading something Seungcheol couldn’t see. That was the way he’d always worked things through.

Sometimes, Seungcheol wanted to know what Jun’s life was _really_ like before he became Master. Had he always been such a quick thinker, or did centuries of vampire politics train it into him? Had he really done the things rumors said he’d done or was it was all just ghost stories to keep his followers in line and his enemies in check?

The thought made something shiver up Seungcheol’s spine.

“You know the Alpha is dead, Junhui. There was a revolt. It’s going to get messy while the wolves pick another Alpha. I’ve heard things —” Seungcheol stared at the floor as he continued. “Soonyoung says some of the newer vampires in the area are questioning if they should stay here. Between Taeyong’s visit and the shifting and this mess with the wolves —”

Jun’s eyes widened and he slapped his palms against the desk. It was like a light bulb had gone off, and he turned to Seungcheol with a strangely wondrous expression.

“Choi Seungcheol. You are really smarter than anyone gives you credit for. Our necromancer is smart too, but sometimes I think that is more luck than anything.”

Seungcheol looked at Jun for a long time, eyebrows raised.

“What did I do, exactly?”

Jun’s smile was wicked.

“You have shown me the missing piece. Do not worry about Wonwoo. He has more sway over Lee Taeyong than he realizes. We will wait for the game to play itself out.”

He pressed a button on the phone on his desk and Minghao slid into the room.

Jun said something to him in Mandarin and Minghao’s eyes went a little wide as he nodded and left.

“Minghao is going to get a few things in order for me,” Jun explained as he stood and walked toward Seungcheol.

When he was standing in front of him, Jun lifted Seungcheol’s chin with his hand, stroked his thumb across the side of his jaw gently and smiled with more heat than Seungcheol was expecting.

“We have two things to discuss, Seungcheol. Only one of them will be unpleasant.”

Seungcheol felt fear mix with the growing heat between them. Jun hadn’t looked at him like that in a long time. He’d forgotten how intense it could be.

“What things?”

Jun smirked.

“How do you feel about marking our animator?”

Seungcheol sucked in a breath as Jun’s thumb traced the corner of his mouth. He was hyper-aware of Jun’s hand on his skin.

“Knowing him the way I do, he will not want to pick between us. You know what that means of course,” Jun continued, and Seungcheol’s eyes went wide as Jun knelt in front of him.

It clicked then, and Seungcheol licked over his bottom lip without thinking. He felt a little pride at the way Jun’s eyes went wide when he touched the tip of his tongue to his thumb, just the slightest pressure before taking it away again.

Jun’s eyes went dark, a simmering warmth that had Seungcheol gripping his knees to keep from pulling him into a kiss. Jun stood up abruptly, running a hand through his hair and looking away for a moment before leaning against the front of his desk.

“The second thing that needs our attention is that we must eliminate the person who has been manipulating poor Lee Taeyong all this time.”

Seungcheol sighed.

Jun’s phone rang and he picked it up as soon as the number flashed across the screen. Seungcheol watched his eyes go wide, watched the color drain from his face, watched him slam the phone down so hard it almost broke.

“He has Wonwoo.”

Seungcheol felt panic jolt through his body as Jun picked up the phone and punched in some numbers.

 

 

 

 

***

 

 

 

 

 

Wonwoo was alone. He wasn’t going to run, couldn’t run, really. He lay on the bed and stared at the ceiling for a long time. He thought about Seungcheol, and he tried to let the vampire know he was alright even though the sun hadn’t finished dipping below the horizon.

He thought about how stupid it was that he had waited to tell him how he felt. If he had told Seungcheol, would things be different? Probably not, but Wonwoo felt like beating himself up a little for it.

He thought about what Jun had said. Lee Taeyong could have him and go back to rot in the city he’d built. He almost laughed out loud.

Taeyong opened the door just as Wonwoo turned to face him. That was when the anger set in.

He was dressed in black jeans and a loose white tee shirt. He didn’t say anything until he sat on the bed across from Wonwoo.

“I hope you’ve thought more about my offer.”

His anger was like a knife, and he hurled it out without care.

“Fuck you. You can’t just _detain_ me because I said I wouldn’t leave the city with you. I have a life here, Taeyong. Jun’s power isn’t weakening. I want to go home.”

Taeyong’s face went through a series of expressions: shock, then sadness, then anger, and finally that sickly sweet smile he’d given Junhui a lifetime ago.

“Wonwoo. Junhui’s reign is over. Why do you think I came to this city? Do you really think it was for the leopards?”

Wonwoo felt a strange nagging at the back of his mind. It was like he knew the answer but all the pieces were out of order.

“If that wasn’t it then why are you here, Taeyong? Are you saying that you came here to take over the city?”

Taeyong smirked. “You’re getting closer, necromancer. I was asked to come to this city and shake things up a bit. I have very powerful companions, as I’m sure you’re aware.”

Taeyong stood and walked closer to him, close enough to trace the rope around his wrists.

“It was all thanks to Taeil, really. He’s the most powerful person I’ve ever met. He knows this really interesting spell that can make lycanthropes shift within a twenty mile radius of where he casts it. He can also make the spell more potent to a specific type of lycanthrope.”

The piece he was missing finally clicked into place.

Taeyong’s arrival.

The shifting.

Joshua’s forced calm at the thought of the wolves getting restless.

Jeonghan’s search for power just in case.

Jun held power over the wolves. If they were having problems, they would turn to their Alpha, and he in turn would shift the blame to Junhui. It was all to make the supernatural beings of the city question Jun’s power, his authority.

Wonwoo felt everything fall away. He felt numb, in shock like he was at the graveyard again with a gun pointed between his eyes.

“It seems your magic doesn’t mix well, though. Taeil said that some unexpected things happened at the graveyard because your magic mingled in a way he wasn’t expecting. He was quite upset when he heard he put you in danger.”

And that was it. That was why Taeil’s magic had felt so familiar to him. He’d felt it in the graveyard when the ghouls attacked. He’d felt it when Mingyu’s zombie wouldn’t go back in the ground. If he wasn’t so angry, he might even feel relieved that his powers hadn’t failed him.

He grabbed Taeyong’s wrist hard, hard enough that he’d definitely bruise if he was alive.

It was like a movie reel playing through his mind at lightning speed.

Taeil’s sad eyes and soft pleas. His insistence that he hadn’t wanted to do whatever he’d done. That he’d done it for love. That love was being used against him and he didn’t have a choice.

He thought back too, to what Yuta had said about Taeyong owing a debt.

“This isn’t you, Taeyong,” he said, his fingers loosening as the realization made its way through him. “Do you want me to hate you? Do you expect me to believe that you’re capable of this?”

Taeyong looked down at him, his pupils blown and mouth a little _oh_ of surprise.

“You don’t think I’m capable of this, necromancer?”

Wonwoo smiled wryly up at him. “At first, absolutely, but now I’m not so sure. I’m still not really sure which you is the real you, but I want to believe that you’re doing this because you don’t have a choice.”

He pulled Taeyong forward until the vampire sat on the bed next to him, and just as Wonwoo opened his mouth to continue the door to the room burst open.

The final piece of the puzzle strode into the room, his eyes hard as he locked on to the light grip Wonwoo had on Taeyong’s wrist.

“What are you doing here?” Taeyong breathed out, so quiet Wonwoo almost didn’t hear it.

It shouldn’t have been as shocking as it was, but Wonwoo never really thought he would see JR again. He hadn’t considered what it really meant when Jun had said the two Masters were allies.

JR didn’t acknowledge what Taeyong said. He simply stopped in front of Taeyong, pulled the vampire up by his arm and hit him across the face.

Wonwoo’s mouth dropped open, but he shut it quickly before the vampire could notice. JR stroked his cheek soothingly while Taeyong just stood there, his chest rising and falling with shallow breaths.

“I told you not to get close to him, pet. Every second you spend with this necromancer is a second he has to taint you with his magic. He will rip out your soul without a second thought.”

Taeyong’s eyes went to the floor instantly.

“I’m sorry, sir. I’m not sure what came over me,” he said softly.

It was at that moment that Wonwoo started to worry. The _when_ he’d felt earlier was morphing back into an _if_.

 _If_ he made it out of this.

 _If_ he got to see Seungcheol and Jun again.

 _If_ Taeyong actually cared about him, or if it had all been an act to get him into JR’s hands.

JR stepped away from Taeyong and gave Wonwoo a smile that was more of a sneer.

“This is even better than I imagined. What do you think Junhui will do to get you back, necromancer? Do you think he will finally submit to me?” he asked as he slid Wonwoo’s phone out of his pocket. “Let’s find out, shall we?”

JR made the call and Wonwoo desperately tried to meet Taeyong’s eyes. He looked shell shocked. His face was still red where JR had hit him, and in spite of everything that was happening Wonwoo wanted to reach out and make sure he was alright. If JR was the person Taeyong was indebted to, what did that mean for him? What did that mean for the meetings they’d been having?

Wonwoo was sure JR didn’t know about them. Did that mean —?

Taeyong finally met his eyes and gave him a miniscule shake of his head, only noticeable because Wonwoo was looking for it.

“If you want your necromancer returned to you mostly intact you will meet me at the warehouse, you know the one. And you will come alone Junhui, or so help me I will make you watch as I drain every drop of blood from his body.”

JR ended the call before Wonwoo could hear anything Jun said. The vampire tossed his phone on the bed and began to untie the ropes at the headboard. He pulled Wonwoo up when he had them undone, tying his hands securely behind his back.

“I have wanted to do this since the first time I saw you, necromancer. Killing you will be the most fun I’ve had in decades.”

He pulled Wonwoo by his arm, but his mouth drew down in a scowl as he did it, like touching Wonwoo was unpleasant to him. As they left the room two men, clearly bodyguards, pushed Taeyong forward, and he walked with his eyes down, the other men at the back.

 _If_.

It was definitely _if_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :)


	16. Chapter 16

Wonwoo was pretty sure that he would never be able to be tied up in any capacity ever again. He’d been blindfolded until they arrived at the warehouse, but he could tell that the car ride hadn’t been a long one. He didn’t know why JR had chosen such a place for their meeting with Jun, but knowing what little he did about the Master Vampire it was guaranteed to have a purpose.

Taeyong had been silent and Wonwoo wasn’t sure if it was because JR couldn’t know what had happened between them or if it was because Taeyong was on board with the plan to kill him and Jun. It made him feel queasy.

He wished he could know, either way, which Taeyong was in front of him now.

The warehouse was empty except for a few old shipping containers. It was pretty small, maybe the size of a two car garage, and obviously abandoned. The only sign of life was the small chair in the center of the room, and Wonwoo shivered when he saw it. It was obvious what it was there for, what this place was _used_ for.

JR held Wonwoo’s left arm in a vice grip, the bones grinding together in a way that made him feel sick, like JR knew somehow that it was the arm that his wolf had broken. He shoved Wonwoo into the chair and didn’t speak for a long time.

“You still look too pretty, necromancer. How will Junhui know I’m serious if you don’t look the part?”

JR snapped his fingers twice in the air and one of the men stationed at the door walked forward.

“Don’t make him unconscious,” he said plainly.

The man nodded and didn’t even turn to face Wonwoo fully before backhanding him across the face. The force of it made his ears ring and he ran his tongue over his bottom lip reflexively, tasting blood.

The way it happened was almost clinical. The man hit him a few more times across the face and twice in the stomach. He could feel tears leaking from the corners of his eyes, the steady drip of blood from his mouth into the fabric of his jeans. He didn’t scream, though. He wouldn’t.

As the bodyguard returned to his post JR came back toward him with a sick smile.

“That’s better, but this won’t upset our dear Junhui nearly enough. I think there’s something else we need to do.”

Wonwoo felt fear then. Real, genuine fear icy in his veins.

He searched the building frantically, looking for any sign of someone that would help him, forcing his breaths to come out evenly.

JR was in front of him. He leaned forward and stroked his hand against Wonwoo’s cheek before yanking his head to the side with a painful grip on his hair.

“He definitely won’t like this,” JR said, a gleeful look in his eyes.

JR bit down on his neck and Wonwoo almost screamed. He’d never had a vampire bite hurt so much, like hot poison was flowing into his veins. It felt as bad as that ghoul gnawing at his leg, pain bright and hot but he refused to give JR the satisfaction of making a sound.

He did three bites on each side of Wonwoo’s neck, some just to leave marks and some where Wonwoo thought he’d never stop drinking. By the time he let go of Wonwoo’s hair black spots were dotting his vision.

“You don’t even taste good, necromancer. Is it just your power that has Junhui wrapped around your finger?” JR asked, the words almost murmured against his skin and it made Wonwoo shudder.

JR licked at the slowly oozing bites on the left side of his neck just as Jun walked through the door.

Wonwoo almost whimpered. Relief washed over him in waves. Wonwoo’s eyes were glued to Jun and it took every ounce of his sanity to keep his composure. Jun met his eyes and his face filled with a rage Wonwoo had never seen.

“ _What have you done_?”

JR turned to face him and sneered.

“I have only given him what he deserves, Junhui. You seem to keep forgetting what this man actually is, and this is why you must be removed from your position as Master of the City. My Taeyong has proven to be a valuable asset. He did everything I asked and more.”

Taeyong had been pressed against the wall off to Wonwoo’s right but had come closer at the mention of his name. He met Jun’s eyes for a moment before looking at the ground.

“You have served your purpose, pet. You can leave if you wish. I’ll call you when you once again become useful.”

Wonwoo’s mouth would have dropped open if he wasn’t busy concentrating on breathing evenly. Taeyong looked at JR with an unreadable expression before turning away.

“It is my own foolishness that has allowed this to happen, but I will not allow any more,” Jun said, his eyes hard as he stared at JR, “You are the Master of the City because of _me_. I have ignored so many of your transgressions, but not this time. I do not make the same mistake twice, Jonghyun.”

JR’s eyes went steely as he strode closer to Jun, the two close enough to strike each other if it came to that. Wonwoo was sure it would come to that.

“You are completely mad, Junhui. The only reason _you_ were not executed by the council is because of _me_. I am the one who has allowed _you_ to hold power you stole, but it’s over.”

Wonwoo felt sick. The _if_ was morphing into impossibility. There wasn’t a way for them to get out of this. They were really going to die.

JR turned back toward Wonwoo, mock pity all over his face.

“That you would let such a pathetic creature as this control you. Junhui, you really are the same whore you’ve always been.”

 

It happened so quickly Wonwoo thought he’d imagined it. The two men stationed at the door fell over, one clutching his throat futilely as he bled out. The other was able to pull out a gun before he too fell over, a silver knife sticking out of his chest.

Taeyong had his back pressed against the wall, his eyes wide. Jun moved toward Wonwoo, but JR was closer. He yanked Wonwoo up by the arm and put himself flush against Wonwoo’s back.

Minghao held a knife in each hand, one pointed at Taeyong and the other at JR. A dangerous hope bloomed in Wonwoo’s chest when he saw the other man.

Maybe it wasn’t impossible. Not if Minghao was here too.

“I ask you to come alone and instead you do this. You said that you never make the same mistakes twice Junhui and yet here we are again, you and your plaything trying to outmatch me. But this time I have an advantage.”

Wonwoo felt the cool edge of a knife against his throat. JR was pressing hard, so hard Wonwoo was sure it was already cutting into his skin. Jun met his eyes and they were wide with something that made him feel sick.

Jun was afraid. Jun was afraid and Wonwoo felt fear shoot through him like a bullet.

JR’s voice was sickly sweet in his ear. “Your time is almost up necromancer. You and Junhui and every wretched thing he rules over are going to die, and I will finally take the power that I was born to have.”

JR took the knife away from his throat and plunged it into his left shoulder. Wonwoo couldn’t hold back the scream. He twisted the knife as he pulled it free and Wonwoo’s vision went black from pain. He thought that he might have actually passed out, was desperately hoping he’d passed out, but when he focused through the haze he saw Jun’s eyes flash in the dim light.

Wonwoo was suddenly on his knees, unable to support his own weight because he wasn’t being held up anymore. He could hear the sounds of struggle as Jun rushed to him.

“We are almost done, _xiao yòu_ ,” he said quickly as he pulled out a small knife and cut the ropes binding Wonwoo’s hands, “You have done so well. I will not be apart from you, so please trust me and hold on just a little longer. Can you do that for me?”

Wonwoo’s head fell against Jun’s shoulder as he nodded weakly. Jun ran a hand through his hair and the comfort was almost enough to make him cry. When he moved his head off Jun’s shoulder there was a dark spot of blood on his coat. He tried not to think about it, or about the way blood trickled in a hot line down his arm.

By the time he was aware of things again, JR was against the back wall, Minghao pinning him with his arm and a knife at his throat as he snarled. Two knives were sticking out of JR’s shoulders. One was Minghao’s and one was…

Taeyong.

Wonwoo could see that Taeyong had moved, must have been the one to get JR off of him, must have fought the knife away from JR and shoved it into his skin.

 

Taeyong had betrayed JR.

 

Taeyong had helped him.

 

Taeyong had chosen _him_.

 

Maybe. Hopefully.

 

Taeyong met his eyes and Wonwoo felt a strange kind of calm overtake him. It was the kind of calm, detached place he went to when he fired a gun.

Jun stood and strode closer to JR, but when he spoke his words were for Taeyong.

“Lee Taeyong. You will prove your loyalty to me here and now or I will kill you. I have run out of patience and mercy. Make your choice.”

JR growled, his eyes hard even as Minghao’s grip on him tightened. Wonwoo knew that Minghao was stronger than the average human, but he hadn’t thought Minghao could overpower a vampire on his own. Was this the real power of a human servant?

Jun held the knife out to Taeyong, the one he’d cut Wonwoo free with, like an offering. JR fought harder as Taeyong took it from Jun’s hands.

“You are a fool, Taeyong. I will kill everyone and leave you alive to carry the burden of dooming your city for the rest of time!”

Jun strode closer and backhanded JR across the face. Taeyong took the last few steps to stand next to Jun. Taeyong’s eyes were beautifully cold, hard and determined like when they’d first met.

It seemed kind of cathartic, the way he plunged the knife into JR’s stomach. JR screamed and Taeyong pulled the knife out before dropping it to the floor and backing up until he was almost next to Wonwoo, his eyes locked on his hand that was stained with JR’s blood. Jun put his hand on JR’s face as he smiled almost sweetly at him.

“JR, that’s quite enough. I know why you brought me here. You wanted to me remember this place, but I think it is you that has forgotten what the Master used it for.”

Jun gave JR’s face one last caress before grabbing him by the throat. Minghao moved away and Jun kept JR pinned to the wall as the sound of something heavy being slid open filled the room.

Wonwoo saw it then. A few feet from the two vampires was a coffin. A special coffin that had ties like a corset with big silver chains looped through it.

Wonwoo’s eyes went wide. JR turned his head as much as Jun would let him, until he saw it too.

“The only mercy you are getting from me today is that I am not killing you, but I would hardly call that mercy. This is goodbye, Jonghyun. I do not think we will see each other again. If and when I ever let you out...well, you’ve heard the stories. I doubt you will be the same you anymore.”

Jun pulled JR away from the wall and walked him backward toward the coffin. He went incredibly pale.

“Junhui please. Please don’t do this. Just kill me. You aren’t this cruel. You can’t do this. This isn’t _humane Junhui please you can’t —_ ”

Jun stopped just as JR’s heels reached the edge of the coffin.

“Perhaps you are right,” he said, inclining his head toward Wonwoo, “Let us ask the man who controls me then, yes? What do you think, Wonwoo? Shall I rip his throat out or shall I keep him in the coffin for a few centuries?”

JR locked eyes with him and seemed to visibly relax, all the fight leaving him as quickly as it came.

A sick kind of pleasure bloomed in his chest when Wonwoo thought about JR being locked in a silver coffin. He’d be under their thumb. He’d be out of the way. He wouldn’t be dead. Wonwoo wouldn’t be the reason another living thing was dead. He sighed.

“Put him in the coffin, Jun. He doesn’t deserve to die. That’s too easy.”

He could hear the smile in Jun’s voice.

“My thoughts exactly, _xiao yòu_.”

JR screamed when Jun pushed him into the coffin, but Minghao had the lid shut before he could even attempt to struggle. Minghao wrapped the chains around the coffin in an efficient, practiced way that made Wonwoo wonder if Jun had a lot of prisoners in coffins stowed away somewhere.

Wonwoo sighed again and let his eyes fall shut for just a moment, and when he hit the ground all he heard were JR’s muffled screams.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the mild cliffhanger ;;; but you know I'll be back Monday so you don't have to wait too long! (casual reminder that I love JR and Nuest and this is fiction :D)


	17. Chapter 17

Wonwoo wasn’t out for long, maybe thirty minutes at most. When his eyes finally opened Jun was looking down at him, his hands running through his hair.

His head was on Jun’s lap. He tried to sit up but Jun put a hand gently on his right shoulder.

“Not yet, _xiao yòu_. Stay here a while longer. You need more time to heal.”

“Heal?” Wonwoo asked, his throat scratching around the words. Did that mean Seungcheol was here?

Jun’s expression flattened into something Wonwoo couldn’t place.

“Lee Taeyong took blood from you. It is only fair that he give some back when you need it.”

Wonwoo shivered and turned his head a bit to the side. He couldn’t see the stab wound through his clothes, but when he shrugged his shoulder up it didn’t flare with pain. He looked past his body and saw Taeyong sitting a few feet away on the ground, his knees pulled up into his chest.

“You didn’t have to,” Wonwoo said, hoping his voice was loud enough to reach the vampire.

Taeyong turned his head toward him, his face a mix of relief and guilt. There was a tension between them that made Wonwoo’s teeth ache.

Taeyong had tried to remove Jun as Master of the City. Taeyong had held him captive. Taeyong had done a lot of bad things, but Wonwoo still clung to the way Taeyong had plunged a knife into JR twice to save him.

“ _Why_?”

It was the only thing Wonwoo could manage. It was the only thing he wanted to know.

Taeyong blinked and a tear slid down his face. He scrubbed it away hurriedly and took a deep, shuddering breath.

“Do you think the why will make a difference?” Taeyong asked, his voice soft and sad and far away.

“You didn’t have to help me, but you did. You could have overpowered Jun instead, but you didn’t. Of course the why makes a difference,” Wonwoo answered. He felt Jun’s hand go still in his hair, but he kept his eyes locked on Taeyong.

“Five years ago, I was turned in an attack. I didn’t ask to be a vampire,” Taeyong started, shifting a little so he was facing Wonwoo more directly, “JR killed the vampire that Made me. Then he killed the former Master and every Alpha in my city. He said that the only way I could repay him was to become Master and do anything he asked. This is what he asked me to do, and there were only two options: remove Junhui and you, or get my people killed the same way he’d killed everyone before. My original plan was to hide you in my city and convince him that you were under my control. I didn’t think JR would come here at all. _I didn’t know —_ ”

Taeyong took a shaky breath and buried his face in his knees. Wonwoo sat up, glad that his head swam less than he thought it would.

“Are you saying that you picked me over your city?”

Taeyong looked at him with wide eyes.

“He told me this would be the last time, but you heard it for yourself. JR was never going to call my debt repaid. I couldn’t keep being a pawn. Junhui was the better choice for my people. You or my city.” Taeyong let out a breath that might have been a laugh under different circumstances. “That’s an interesting way to put it.”

Wonwoo couldn’t help the way his lip quirked up. He looked around then, realizing Minghao and the coffin were gone.

“Where is he?” Wonwoo asked, and Jun moved to sit next to him with a sigh.

“Minghao has taken our favorite prisoner somewhere safe. Do not fret, _xiao yòu_ , Taeyong is not our enemy. He has proven himself loyal to me and to you. All that is left now is to negotiate.”

Taeyong moved then, sitting cross legged with a more relaxed expression. Wonwoo felt like he was dreaming. Just a few hours ago he was sure he was going to die, sure that Taeyong had been manipulating him in order to kill Jun.

Sitting with Jun and Taeyong seemed like a fever dream, but Wonwoo couldn’t really complain. There were certainly worse ways the night could have gone.

“The question now is what to do with JR’s territory. There are those that will question the change of power, but I will handle that as it comes,” Jun began, his fingers tapping against his legs, “Long ago, his territory was mine, but in an act of utter foolishness I gave it to him. Perhaps he was right in the end. Perhaps I am still the same as I’ve always been.”

Wonwoo reached unthinkingly for Jun’s hand and gave it a quick squeeze.

“Taeyong, I will give you half of the territory and resources. You have shown a surprising tenacity, and I do not overlook such things. All I ask in return is that you leave the leopards be for now and take your people out of the city.”

Taeyong’s eyes went wide.

“I don’t think that I deserve that much, Junhui. Most of this is my fault. All I did was heal Wonwoo with my blood and stab a vampire.”

Jun smirked.

“As my new ally, you should take what I am offering you Taeyong. I do not enjoy being slighted, and I have already overlooked the fact that you disrespected my hospitality by taking blood from one of mine,” Jun said, his words more teasing than threatening, but Taeyong’s face drained of color as if Jun was holding a knife to his throat.

“I-if you insist. You are too kind, Junhui.”

Taeyong looked at Wonwoo then, and his expression softened into something Wonwoo couldn’t read.

“As soon as I met you, I knew I couldn’t let JR kill you. I hope that you can understand, maybe not now, but someday. I didn’t want to use you or hurt you or make you think that I was a bad person. I hope that we can still talk, at the very least.”

Wonwoo stared at him for a long time.

He was still attracted to Taeyong. Definitely. But he felt like a tornado was ripping through him every time he looked at the vampire.

“I do understand, Taeyong. I don’t think you’re a bad person, not really, but I need some time.”

Taeyong looked at his knees and gave him a small nod. He looked so young, like an eager college freshman Wonwoo had turned down for a coffee date. It made his chest tight.

Jun sighed as he stood, pulling Wonwoo up with him gently.

“I believe we have everything settled. I will have Minghao draw up a formal agreement. We will sign it tomorrow night and you will leave the city before sunrise. Is that clear?”

Taeyong moved to stand and nodded hastily. His eyes searched Wonwoo’s before he bit his lip and looked away.

Wonwoo felt a strange swirling in his gut as he and Jun walked out of the warehouse, leaving Taeyong behind.

 

 

 

 

****

 

 

 

 

Wonwoo could hear the pacing from down the hall. Jun had an arm wrapped around him like he needed help supporting his weight. Honestly, since Taeyong had healed up the stab wound in his shoulder he felt pretty okay. He wasn’t even light headed anymore.

They had just gotten to the door when it flew open, and Seungcheol’s eyes went wide when he took in Wonwoo’s appearance. His lip was still split, his neck was still littered in bites, and there was a bloody hole in his clothes from where the knife cut into his shoulder.

Seungcheol pulled him into his arms and Wonwoo’s breath shuddered out as he buried his face in Seungcheol’s neck. He breathed him in for a long time, even as he heard Jun click the door shut behind them and press against his back.

“Please just tell me you’re alright.” Seungcheol’s voice wavered and for a moment Wonwoo thought he might actually be crying. He moved his face away from Seungcheol’s neck and was a little relieved to see no tears falling from his eyes.

“I’m okay. It looks worse than it is. Plus Taeyong healed —”

“I don’t want to hear his name right now. I’m sure Junhui will fill me in later, but right now I can’t —,” Seungcheol said, his voice strained as he cut him off. Wonwoo just nodded and Seungcheol leaned into his shoulder.

Jun was still tucked against his back, and being between them made that feeling surge through him again, pushing up from his chest, so _so_ close to being said out loud.

It was a long time before anyone spoke again.

“Junhui wouldn’t let me come. I was here when he got the call and he wouldn’t let me come. He said he had to go alone, but he brought Minghao with him. Isn’t that fucked up?” Seungcheol said, his voice muffled against Wonwoo’s skin. “He said ‘Seungcheol, Minghao is half of me. I _am_ still going alone.’ God I’m still so _pissed_ and I was so _worried_ about you and —”

Wonwoo pulled Seungcheol back and kissed him. He melted against Wonwoo right away. It was overwhelmingly gentle, like Seungcheol was afraid to put too much pressure on his lip.

When they broke apart Seungcheol ran his hands over Wonwoo’s stomach, up his arms, anywhere he could reach.

“You’re so bad at shielding, you know that?” he murmured, “I felt everything that happened to you and I can feel everything you’re thinking right now.”

Wonwoo felt a jolt of panic. Did Seungcheol know that he —?

“Later. We’ll talk about it later. Right now I just want to hold you.”

Wonwoo let the two men squish him a bit longer before he finally extracted himself from between them. He took each of their hands in one of his and led them to Jun’s couch. Both of their knees were touching his and it made something warm and syrupy flow through Wonwoo’s chest.

Jun and Seungcheol gave each other a look before Jun spoke.

“ _Xiao yòu_ , Seungcheol and I have been discussing things that we can do to help protect you.”

“How would you feel about getting marked?” Seungcheol asked.

Seungcheol had this way of speaking, where he said important things in a really casual way like that made them less life altering.

Wonwoo’s eyes went wide. “You mean like become your human servant?”

Seungcheol and Jun exchanged a look before they both nodded.

“You don’t have to decide right now. Just think about it,” Seungcheol added quickly.

Wonwoo’s eyebrows rose and he stared hard at his hands in his lap.

“Jun already has a human servant. You can’t have another one, can you?”

He looked to Jun who gave him a wry kind of smile.

“That is correct, _xiao yòu_. I cannot mark two people fully.”

Seungcheol took his hand and gave it a squeeze. “Only one vampire can give a human the fourth mark. You’d have to be mine if that’s what you want.”

“The only problem is that Seungcheol having a necromancer as a human servant could potentially weaken my power base.” Jun sighed. “It is easy enough to say that you are under my influence, but if you become bound to Seungcheol in this way, any sway I potentially hold over you is gone. It will appear from the outside that I am so weak my own Second is planning to remove me. And considering the current state of the wolves, it could be very bad indeed.”

“I’m not going to do anything that puts either of you at risk like that,” Wonwoo rushed out. It already felt like his existence was a threat to Jun’s power. He couldn’t do something knowing it would hurt him.

Jun rubbed his thumb across Wonwoo’s other hand and Seungcheol laughed.

“So you’re saying you won’t think about it?” Seungcheol asked, and Wonwoo sighed.

“Isn’t there a way you can both mark me?”

Wonwoo almost laughed at the way Seungcheol and Jun looked to each other before turning back to him with identically wide eyes.

Jun’s smile was wry. “The ceremony for marking can be, well, very intimate.”

Wonwoo understood the implication right away.

“So what you’re saying is,” Wonwoo started, inching his hands up each of their thighs, “if you both mark me then you both fuck me?”

Jun’s smile became a smirk and Seungcheol looked between the two of them with an intensity that was a little too obvious.

“That would be the inevitable conclusion, _xiao yòu_.”

Wonwoo looked at his two lovers.

“Is that something you’d both be okay with? If I decide that’s what I want, would you do it?”

“Absolutely,” Seungcheol rushed out, just as Jun said “Of course.”

Wonwoo let that particular worry go in a long sigh.

“If you’re both alright with it, then I promise I’ll think about it. But I’d really like to go home and sleep in my own bed.”

He gave each of them a quick kiss on the cheek before standing.

“I have to inform Seungcheol of what has happened tonight. Can you make it home, _xiao yòu_?” Jun asked, moving to stand but Wonwoo put a hand on his shoulder before he could get up.

“I’m not even injured anymore. I can get home just fine.”

Jun pulled him down into a kiss that was so long Seungcheol whined. When they broke apart Jun put their foreheads together.

“I am so relieved that you are okay, Wonwoo. I would have done anything to get you out of there. It worked out better than I planned in the end. I meant what I said. I will not be apart from you.”

Wonwoo smiled at Jun’s words. He turned to Seungcheol and gave him a kiss that ended up being just a long.

“I’ll see you soon,” Seungcheol said a little breathlessly as Wonwoo straightened up and headed for the door.

He was way too excited about seeing the drab walls and plain sheets of his bedroom.


	18. Chapter 18

Wonwoo woke up when he felt the mattress dip next to him. Seungcheol slid into bed and wasted no time pulling him into his chest. For as little sleep as Wonwoo had gotten he felt surprisingly better. Seungcheol had probably starting sending him more energy as soon as Wonwoo had left Jun’s apartment.

Wonwoo could feel the tangle of emotions through their bond, which was so unlike Seungcheol it made him pull back enough to look into his eyes.

“You don’t usually think so loud,” he said softly as Seungcheol traced little patterns into his bare back.

“I don’t know how I feel about everything that happened. I don’t know if I really trust Taeyong,” Seungcheol sighed out, “It’s a lot to take in. I just need time to sort it all out.”

Wonwoo carded his hand through Seungcheol’s hair.

“I don’t really know if I trust him either, but I want to believe that he’s a good person,” Wonwoo admitted, “I trust Jun, though, and I don’t think he would have done this if it would hurt us in the end.”

He moved in closer, until Seungcheol’s cool body touched his in a tight line. He knew what else was on Seungcheol’s mind. He knew because he’d promised they’d talk about it later.

“I guess you already know,” Wonwoo said after a few heartbeats, voice low and quiet between them.

Seungcheol moved his hand to cup Wonwoo’s cheek and tilted his face so they were eye to eye. He was smiling in that soft but flirty way he did when he was pleased, and it made Wonwoo’s heart pound hard against his chest.

“You’re not getting out of it that easy, Jeon Wonwoo,” he said, stroking his thumb against Wonwoo’s jaw, “I wanna hear you say it.”

Wonwoo took a breath and connected their lips, used the small moment where Seungcheol relaxed against him to settle on top of the vampire. He slid his tongue across Seungcheol’s bottom lip, a tease more than anything, before sitting up so he could speak.

“I’m in love with you.”

It wasn’t the first time Wonwoo had ever said those words, but he’d never been more afraid saying them than he was now.

It was like he’d run off a diving platform, meters and meters above the water and unsure if there was even water underneath him or if he’d just crash into the dry concrete.

Seungcheol pulled him back down and buried his face in his neck.

“I’m in love with you, too.”

Wonwoo sort of knew. Seungcheol was reckless with his heart, but hearing the words out loud for the first time sent something hot across their bond, like they’d both opened the floodgates and everything was passing between them.

Seungcheol put his arms around Wonwoo and squeezed tight.

“I —” Wonwoo started even as heat crept up his face. He really wasn’t good at this. “I want to be your boyfriend. Officially, I mean.”

He shivered as Seungcheol’s hands trailed down his sides and settled on his hips. He finally moved his head back from Wonwoo’s neck. He was grinning.

“I’ve wanted to tell you I loved you since you woke up in the hospital, but I didn’t want to freak you out.”

“We barely knew each other then,” Wonwoo rushed out, surprise and embarrassment making him warm.

Seungcheol pulled him down against his bare chest and Wonwoo put his head over Seungcheol’s heart so he could hear the occasional beats it made.

“When I finally made it over to you I was terrified,” Seungcheol started, his words rumbling through Wonwoo’s body, “I wasn’t even afraid of what might happen to me. I just didn’t want you to die. And while you were lying in that hospital bed I just kept asking myself why I cared so much about someone I hardly knew. When you opened your eyes, I knew I was in love with you.”

Wonwoo kissed Seungcheol again, something almost too hot flowing across their bond. He was starting to think that was just what Seungcheol’s love felt like: strong and warm, almost too much but kind of nice. Like a hot spring or that first sip of coffee.

“I want to be your boyfriend too,” Seungcheol started when they broke apart, his lips still against Wonwoo’s, “I want to be with you forever if you’ll let me.”

Seungcheol kissed the tip of his nose and then his lips. Wonwoo sighed and melted against him as Seungcheol’s tongue traced the roof of his mouth. He didn’t mean for it to turn heated, but as Seungcheol’s hands slid up his back a soft moan escaped him. He could feel how smug that made Seungcheol through their bond.

“Do you want to —” Seungcheol started as they broke apart.

“ _God yes_ ,” Wonwoo answered before he even finished.

Seungcheol’s eyes searched his with something that started to edge on frantic.  Wonwoo’s hands slid up his bare torso and he watched a little dazedly as Seungcheol arched into the touch.

“Are you sure?” Seungcheol asked, hissing as Wonwoo thumbed across his nipple. “If you’re not healed enough yet we can —”

Wonwoo took his hand off Seungcheol’s chest and put it right on the growing bulge in his pants.

“Seungcheol, please.” Wonwoo rubbed the heel of his hand against Seungcheol until his head fell back against the sheets. “I’m fine, really. I want this, I want you. _Please_.”

Seungcheol nodded a little weakly, his eyes dropping to a half-lidded stare that had Wonwoo’s throat going dry and his cock twitching in his pants.

He moved between Seungcheol’s legs, slipping his fingers into the waistband of his pants and lower, low enough that he was just brushing against the base of Seungcheol’s cock. Seungcheol had his lip trapped between his teeth but he kept their eyes locked. It was enough to make Wonwoo tingly all over. He worked Seungcheol’s pants off and tossed them to the floor, wrapping a hand around him with a satisfied hum.

Seungcheol groaned, his hips jerking against the sheets.

“Sensitive,” Wonwoo murmured, his cock twitching in earnest against the fabric of his pants. He worked his hand up Seungcheol’s cock teasingly, the tips of his fingers dragging across the head.

“Can’t help it,” Seungcheol panted out, “When you touch me I —”

Seungcheol’s words were cut off by a moan when Wonwoo squeezed the base of his cock. He made himself keep the slow pace but he added more pressure. Seungcheol’s fingers were tight in the sheets and it made the corners of Wonwoo’s mouth quirk up.

Wonwoo enjoyed taking Seungcheol apart piece by piece. It was satisfying to watch him come undone, hear him beg Wonwoo for more until he was shaking.

He gasped when Wonwoo licked the underside of his cock, a hand coming to grip tight at his hair right away. Wonwoo shuddered. He couldn’t hide the things he liked when Seungcheol could feel the burst of heat across their bond. So he didn’t hide them, and Seungcheol didn’t either.

Seungcheol twisted around just enough to open the drawer next to the bed and get the lube out. It ended up on the bed somewhere near his knee, but he was more focused on the taste of Seungcheol’s precum on his tongue. He slid his mouth lower, low enough that Seungcheol’s hand tightened in his hair. It was the borderline pain-pleasure that made him groan around Seungcheol’s cock, bracing the hand not wrapped around him on his thigh.

He bobbed his head, sliding down until he met his hand in an easy pace that had Seungcheol’s hips chasing his mouth after a few minutes, a string of _fuck fuck fuck_ leaving his lips when Wonwoo moved his hand to take Seungcheol’s cock down his throat.

When Wonwoo finally came up for air, Seungcheol was breathing hard, his lips bitten and hair a mess.

Wonwoo brought his hand back to Seungcheol’s cock, sliding across the slick skin with a few quick strokes.

Seungcheol’s eyes fluttered closed, the muscles in his stomach twitching. Wonwoo almost had to look away. Teasing Seungcheol was fun but it took a toll on him too. Sometimes getting Seungcheol off made him so hard and on edge he wanted to grind into the bed just to find some friction.

He settled for uncapping the lube, coating his fingers and shoving two inside without warning. Seungcheol gasped, his whole body arching off the bed. The first time Seungcheol had asked him to do it, he’d been skeptical. It was hard for him to be rough with Seungcheol at first despite his own occasional enjoyment of the same thing. But after he felt the electric pleasure shoot across their bond, it came easily.

He kept the pace slow, fingers angled up and coaxing little sounds from Seungcheol. He rolled his hips against Wonwoo’s fingers, sucking in a breath when he ghosted just shy of his prostate.

“God you’re being such a tease tonight,” Seungcheol ground out, wrapping his hand around his cock with a shudder.

“Are you not enjoying yourself?” Wonwoo asked, angling into Seungcheol’s prostate dead on. Seungcheol’s hand stilled on his cock as he went boneless. He smirked down at the vampire, thrusting quicker so that there was a constant slide where Seungcheol wanted him most.

Seungcheol looked up at him, lip trapped between his teeth as he squeezed the base of his cock almost desperately.

“Will you just get on with it?” he asked roughly, gasping when Wonwoo slipped another finger inside.

“Two isn’t enough and you know it,” Wonwoo said, working his fingers in slowly.

“This is for your benefit and you know it,” Seungcheol quipped, smirking back even as his eyes fluttered.

It was sort of true. Seungcheol got off on it sometimes, the burn of Wonwoo slipping inside after hasty prep. Seungcheol could handle a lot before it got to be too much, but Wonwoo liked watching him come undone under his hands and mouth too much to indulge in that particular kink very often.

He waited until three fingers was a smooth easy glide inside Seungcheol before pulling out. He wiped his fingers on his pants as he eased them off, his dick hard and aching. There was a damp spot where he’d been leaking precum into the fabric. Seungcheol kept staring at his cock and it sent something hot through his chest. Wonwoo tossed his clothes off the bed and slicked himself up, eyes locked with Seungcheol as he fucked into his hand a few times.

Seungcheol pulled him down by the hand not wrapped around his cock. He connected their lips in a messy kiss, more tongue than anything.

Seungcheol was already a mess. He wrapped his legs around Wonwoo’s hips and pulled him in closer, desperate with need. Wonwoo broke the kiss so he could look down and line himself up, the head of his cock catching on Seungcheol’s rim and making them both groan.

“Are you going to make love to me?” Seungcheol asked, the words breathy and low in Wonwoo’s ear. It made his whole body break out in chills. It was just an expression, but something about the way Seungcheol said it set his whole body on fire.

“Haven’t we been doing that the whole time?”

Wonwoo pushed in, one hand at Seungcheol’s waist and the other clutching the sheets next to his head. Seungcheol arched into it, hips urging him in deeper even after he bottomed out. He buried his face in Seungcheol’s neck, giving himself time to adjust more than anything. Seungcheol would say he didn’t need it, but the tight heat was almost too much for Wonwoo’s sensitive cock. He definitely needed a moment.

He kissed and nipped at Seungcheol’s neck in a line.

“Planning to bite?” Seungcheol asked, his voice teasing. Wonwoo smirked against his skin.

“Do you want me to?”

Seungcheol hummed, bearing more of his neck to Wonwoo’s teeth.

“You biting me for a change. It’s kind of hot. You like the taste of your own blood enough, I wonder if you’d like mine.”

Wonwoo felt his face go hot at the words, rolling his hips a little against Seungcheol.

“You weren’t supposed to know about that,” Wonwoo said, biting just hard enough to leave an impression of his teeth against his neck. Seungcheol groaned.

“You really need more practice at shielding, especially during sex. I can feel how torn you are between teasing me and fucking me like you mean it. I know you can’t stop thinking about me biting you now. I know —”

Wonwoo pulled out and thrust back in roughly, and whatever else Seungcheol was going to say was cut off with a choked moan. He got the point.

He set a slow pace after that, letting Seungcheol feel every inch of his cock slide in and out. Seungcheol’s thigh tightened around his hips.

“My neck is kind of off limits right now,” Wonwoo said, groaning when Seungcheol rolled his hips to match his rhythm.

Wonwoo didn’t know if his neck was healed or not, but the idea of being bitten there after —

He just needed some time before that.

“It’s fine. Where do you want it, babe?”

Wonwoo almost jerked to a stop at the pet name, his whole body hot with arousal.  

“Babe? _Really_?” Wonwoo punctuated his words with harsh thrusts, satisfied when Seungcheol’s head tipped back in pleasure.

“You’re my boyfriend now. I have to call you _something_ ,” Seungcheol panted out, his hips working against Wonwoo, urging him faster, deeper.

Wonwoo picked up the pace. He pulled Seungcheol’s leg higher against his waist, changing the angle just enough to slide over his prostate. Seungcheol’s pleasure was like a firecracker across their bond. Wonwoo could see the afterimage in his vision as he held his wrist out to Seungcheol, who managed to smirk at him.

“You want to come already?” Seungcheol cooed out, teasing and almost a little degrading. It made an embarrassed kind of heat shoot through his gut, bringing him closer than he would ever admit out loud. Who knew he was into something like that? Seungcheol probably felt it but was nice enough to keep quiet, licking hot against the skin of his wrist instead.

“Do I have to beg for it?” Wonwoo asked, trying to match the tone Seungcheol used on him. He almost stopped thrusting completely, instead grinding inside of him in a way that put constant pressure against his prostate. Seungcheol’s hand went tight against his wrist.

“I don’t think this is a game you can win Wonwoo,” Seungcheol said, his eyes dark as his fangs grazed against his skin. He groaned but managed to keep himself from fucking hard into Seungcheol by force of will alone. If that was how Seungcheol wanted to play he definitely wouldn’t lose.

He took his hand off Seungcheol’s hip and stroked his neglected cock. Seungcheol’s fangs almost pricked his skin when he moaned. Wonwoo smirked until Seungcheol tightened around him, and god _that_ was going to be too much in no time.

Wonwoo could feel the edge of his orgasm building, could feel how close Seungcheol was, his cock twitching desperately in Wonwoo’s hand. He swiped his thumb across the precum beading at the head of his cock and brought it to his mouth, keeping his eyes locked with Seungcheol as he stuck it in his mouth.

Seungcheol sighed in mock defeat, his fangs breaking the skin of his wrist and Wonwoo felt his rhythm pick back up, slamming into Seungcheol as static dotted his vision. Seungcheol’s bite really was like its own orgasm, the pleasure immediate and hot, coursing through his entire body like a drug. He took Seungcheol’s cock back in his hand, stroking him in time with his thrusts. Seungcheol moaned around his wrist and he kept his pace, thrusting into him until Seungcheol’s legs were squeezing tight around his waist.

He worked his hand faster, until Seungcheol had to take his mouth off his wrist with a string of _close god so close_.

Wonwoo thrust into Seungcheol hard enough to jolt him up the bed. He kept their eyes locked as he brought wrist up to his mouth, licking the blood still dripping out sluggishly.

Seungcheol’s head fell back against the sheets and he came with a moan over his stomach, hard enough that some hit his chest.

Seungcheol tightened around him and Wonwoo couldn’t hold back anymore. The feeling of being bitten, the way he could feel the echo of Seungcheol’s orgasm across their bond, it was too much.

He thrust once, twice more and came, his body shaking with the intensity. It felt like a long time before he opened his eyes and looked down at Seungcheol. He was giving Wonwoo that pleased grin, pulling him down into a kiss.

“I love you,” Seungcheol breathed out when they broke apart.

It made Wonwoo’s face hot and his stomach all fluttery.

“I love you, too.”

He kissed Seungcheol for a few more minutes, enjoying the sated way their lips moved against each other before easing himself out with a little groan.

“I’m getting straight in the shower,” Wonwoo said as he flopped against the bed.

“That’s why you’re on the bed next to me right?”

Wonwoo pushed at his shoulder and Seungcheol grinned.

“Am I not allowed to lay with you for five minutes?”

Seungcheol shrugged, a smile still playing on his lips. He grabbed Wonwoo’s wrist and licked it, almost laughing at the way Wonwoo shivered against him.

“Five minutes, then we get up,” Seungcheol said after a contented silence.

Wonwoo put his head on Seungcheol’s chest and nodded. He wouldn’t be able to go back to sleep unless he was clean no matter how comfortable Seungcheol was.

 

 

 

 

***

 

 

 

 

 

Wonwoo let Seungcheol slide half on top of him, leg thrown casually over his.

“I love you,” he said, nose nuzzling the skin behind Wonwoo’s ear.

“You don’t have to keep saying it,” Wonwoo whined, hands coming up to cover his eyes. He should have known Seungcheol would be like this. He was already ridiculously affectionate and romantic and now he had an excuse to be even more so.

“I’ll say it as much as I like, thank you very much.”

Seungcheol gave him a peck behind his ear before moving his head to Wonwoo’s shoulder. The wound there was more of a scar, already pink and faded like he’d been stabbed months ago and not hours.

“You’re in love with Junhui, too. I hope you know that,” Seungcheol said, his eyebrows furrowing just a little.

Wonwoo groaned.

“I’m going to tell him, and I’m going to tell him about you, too.”

Seungcheol moved more onto his side so he could run his hand through Wonwoo’s hair.

“Remember how you’re so bad at shielding? There’s something else. You should just tell me.”

Wonwoo rolled away from Seungcheol, and with his back turned he sighed.

“How do you feel about the three of us together?”

He wished Seungcheol didn’t have super hearing and wasn’t connected to him. But the truth was that he had been thinking about them for a while and not just in a sex way and Seungcheol wanted him to say it so he did.

Wonwoo wanted the little slice of domesticity he’d made with Seungcheol to include Jun too. He wanted to wake up with both of them in his bed, to see who made better coffee, to snuggle between them on the couch after work.

Seungcheol pressed against his back, warm from blood and the heat of the shower. He kissed Wonwoo’s nape before hooking his chin over his shoulder.

“It depends on what you mean by _together_. Romancing Junhui seems like a pain. I don’t know how you’ve managed it for so long.”

Seungcheol’s tone was playful but Wonwoo could hear the way the thought worked through his mind. Wonwoo turned to face him as he continued.

“If you’re asking if I want to have sex with Junhui, the answer is definitely yes. As for the romance stuff, we’ll have to see. For now I think whatever happens between the two of us will just be casual.” He gave Wonwoo a quick kiss on the lips. “He thinks he’s hiding it, but I’ve known Junhui for a long time. He’s so in love with you it’s kind of gross.”

Wonwoo buried his face in Seungcheol’s chest. The idea that someone like Jun would be attracted to him was so foreign Wonwoo was still sure he was dreaming it half the time.

But Jun being in _love_?

With _him_?

It seemed impossible.

“I meant what I said earlier, you know. I want to be with you forever if you’ll let me.”

Seungcheol kissed the top of his head and Wonwoo’s stomach flipped in that sweet in love kind of way. It was weird to admit, weird to allow himself to just…be in love. He was used to things in his life being conditional. He’d grown up with strings: his parents, his girlfriend, his high school friends. Everything good that happened to Jeon Wonwoo only happened to benefit someone else.

But what he had with Seungcheol, with Jun, it was just his. It was theirs. There were strings, maybe a lot of them, but instead of weighing him down they made Wonwoo feel stronger, safer.

He worked his way up Seungcheol’s chest, peppering kisses until he reached his lips. He kissed Seungcheol deep but lazy, let himself relax against him, and only when he couldn’t take it anymore did he pull back.

“I love you.”

He didn’t rush it, just let himself say it, let the weight of the words carry across the tiny space between them, let the tingly warmth of his feelings travel their bond.

He stared into Seungcheol’s warm eyes, watched the soft, sweet smile spread across his face, and it was like every single thing cemented in place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I maybe....teared up when I wrote this ;~; I've been waiting to get to this point for a long time! Love!! It's official!!! Thank you to everyone that's stuck with me so far, or if you're just joining then welcome!! 
> 
> I can't believe there's only one chapter left


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well everyone, we're here again. I just want to thank you all for reading, for commenting and sticking with me through this! 
> 
>  
> 
> I'm gonna thank a few special people just because I can <3
> 
> To Jess: For being my beta and my friend even when you've been so busy ;~; I'm eternally grateful that we met!
> 
> To Didi: For listening to me whine my way through every single smut scene in this fic, for always being open to my rambling, and just for being my friend in general ;~; I love you so much <3
> 
> To Andrea: For being my biggest cheerleader and my friend! There's a whole scene in this chapter that wouldn't be here if it weren't for you!
> 
> So, just like last time, this ending is true Anita Blake style! After all, we still have a few ends that need to be tied up ;)

Jeonghan didn’t tell Joshua about becoming Seungcheol’s wolf to call until it was already done, and much like Wonwoo predicted Joshua had put a bag in Jeonghan’s hands and told him that he needed some space (which was Joshua for _I’m so angry I can’t think and I need you to go away until I figure it out_ ). So Jeonghan stayed in Seungcheol’s empty apartment and Wonwoo went to Joshua’s townhouse to be a good best friend.

“I just don’t understand how he thought this was a good idea,” Joshua said through his tears, his head buried in Wonwoo’s chest as the two lay on his couch.

“He told me that he’s so in love with you he would do anything and everything in his power to keep you safe. He was sure you’d do the same for him.”

Joshua looked up and sniffed and Wonwoo ran a hand through his hair.

“I just feel like he’s doubting our love, you know? He brought another man into our lives _permanently_.” He leaned into Wonwoo’s hand. He’d be moments from purring if he wasn’t so sad.

“Magic and love rarely have anything to do with each other in my experience. We’re all just lucky the vampires left before they could meet you. Whatever you and Jeonghan decide to do about Seungcheol is something you’ll all have to work out together.”

Joshua nodded and put his head back on Wonwoo’s chest. It was better that Joshua didn’t know all the details about Taeyong, at least not yet. They’d talk about it soon enough because Joshua knew almost everything about his life, but for now he could be in the dark a little longer.

“I’m still kind of mad at him…but I do miss him. I’ll give him another day or two and then I’ll ask him to come home.”

Wonwoo hummed and moved his hand down to rub soothingly at Joshua’s back.

“I do think watching Seungcheol and Jeonghan go at it would be really hot though.”

Joshua huffed and pulled a blanket off the back of the couch to shove in his face.

“Just because you’re in an open relationship doesn’t mean I should be too.”

Wonwoo laughed and when he was able to see again Joshua was smiling too.

Joshua would be fine. It would take time, but Wonwoo was sure he and Jeonghan would get through it.

 

 

 

\----

 

 

 

Despite reporting the entire incident to Vernon, Wonwoo was still technically working with the Homicide Division and Seokmin, too. Wonwoo was absolutely not thrilled with the situation, so he bargained around the problem by begging Mingyu to come along any time he worked a case.

The first time he worked with Seokmin after the incident in his office, his neck was still covered in bites from JR. He didn’t try to hide them. Seokmin had stared at him with a look of disgust before turning and walking toward his car, mumbling something to the other detectives as he passed.

Mingyu’s eyes went wide when he saw Wonwoo’s neck.

“They really did a number on you, didn’t they?”

Wonwoo sighed. “This wasn’t from Seungcheol or Jun. I don’t want to talk about it.”

Mingyu nodded a little too quickly and Wonwoo got to work.

The detectives that were left at the grave spent the majority of their time heckling Wonwoo. The words they threw out at him were so disgusting even Mingyu was shaking with anger by the time they walked back to their squad cars.

If this was what it would mean to work with the Homicide Division, Wonwoo wasn’t sure how much longer he could keep it up before helping people wasn’t worth it anymore.

It was the final push Wonwoo needed to walk into Vernon’s office and demand a week’s vacation. As much as he hated leaving Jihoon and Mingyu to pick up his slack, he kind of needed a moment to breathe. He’d been through a lot, physically and mentally, and if he didn’t want to have a breakdown he’d have to take some time to himself.

At least until the bite marks healed.

 

 

 

\----

 

 

 

Two months of silence went by before he heard from Taeyong.

_Can I send you a part of my essay? I’m really stuck._

It was kind of better that Taeyong hadn’t started with an apology. He’d done that enough, and if he really wanted them to have any kind of relationship they’d have to move forward.

_Sure._

Wonwoo read over Taeyong’s paper at lightning speed, sent him a few corrections, and got a cute heart emoji in return.

The transition from enemy to ally had been interesting. It took Wonwoo a few weeks before thinking of Taeyong didn’t send him into a panic. Taeyong wasn’t his enemy, hadn’t been his enemy at all really.

As it turned out, Taeyong’s meddling in the wolf pack had kind of worked out for the best anyway.

Wonwoo was definitely attracted to Taeyong, had been since the first time they saw each other. Some days he couldn’t stop thinking about Taeyong pressed into the sheets, Taeyong kissing him, Taeyong sinking his fangs into any patch of open skin he could find.

Once Seungcheol had gotten used to the idea, he took every opportunity he had to tease him about it because Seungcheol was weak to the idea of Wonwoo in bed with anyone.

He still wasn’t sure where they stood, exactly, but he was curious to see how it would end up.

Maybe he’d take a trip to the city in the summer. Just for a few days. He’d heard the ocean was beautiful.

 

 

 

\----

 

 

 

Seungcheol had greatly underestimated the bond between a vampire and animal to call. When it happened, Wonwoo had been sitting on Jun’s couch and his vision had gone completely white. The next thing he knew he was on the floor with Jun hovering over him, fear clear as day on his face.

He felt Seungcheol’s power flow through him, but what was once warm was now hot. The first week was so draining on Seungcheol that Wonwoo had to give him twice the usual energy and he’d ended up with a cat curled up on his bed one morning. The only good thing was that the increase in their power meant he was able to cuddle the cat most of the afternoon, only dying again when Seungcheol padded into the living room at sunset.

“You need to get this figured out, Seungcheol,” he said as he cradled the cat’s body against his chest and headed out the door.

Seungcheol pulled him into a tight hug as soon as he got back.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know it would be like this and if I did I would have let Jeonghan go to Junhui instead,” he murmured into Wonwoo’s skin.

He sighed and wrapped his arms around the vampire.

“We’ve dealt with this before. We’re both stronger now than we were back then. We’ll be fine.”

Sometimes Wonwoo would be sitting in his office and he’d smell pine trees and clean wind, or he’d catch a flash of silver eyes at the edge of his vision. Bits of Jeonghan were bleeding through Seungcheol to him, but he hadn’t had the courage to ask if Jeonghan could sense him, too.

The added power must have been worth it in the end. Wonwoo didn’t know the details, but if the deep, slow healing claw marks just below Jeonghan’s neck were any indication, his new title of Alpha was hard won.

Wonwoo came across an article a few weeks after that about something called a triumvirate, where a vampire, a human servant and their animal to call form a bond together. Wonwoo wasn’t a human servant, not even close. But the idea of having that much power, to be able to protect the people he cared about, nagged at him in the quiet hours of near dawn before he fell asleep.

 

 

 

\----

 

 

 

 

Junhui gave his first televised interview a week after Taeyong left the city. The reaction was about what Wonwoo expected. Headlines after it aired ranged from **_Master of the City’s Idol-Like Good Looks_ ** to **_Moon Junhwi, The Diplomat We’ve Been Waiting For_**. Wonwoo watched it on his laptop while Seungcheol was at the bar, and when the reporter asked him about vampire relations with the neighboring city to the east Jun hid a soft smile behind his hand.

“I heard that the Master Vampire to the east paid you a visit recently. Was this a strictly formal meeting or is there romance brewing?” the reporter asked, eyes bright like she was watching a drama.

Jun folded his hands over his crossed legs and smirked.

“I suppose we will all have to wait and see.”

Dispatch ran an article not twelve hours later, a leaked picture of Jun and Taeyong leaning close to speak to each other swept across the city like wildfire.

Wonwoo had no idea how anyone had taken that picture. It was from the night the two had signed their agreement, but it did look intimate without context, like the two had snuck away for a secret rendezvous.

The truth was that their only _real_ relationship was their newfound alliance and their shared interest in one Jeon Wonwoo, twenty three, necromancer.

But better the city think they were after each other instead.

 

 

 

\----

 

 

 

The first time Wonwoo brought someone back to life after Taeyong left, the cool magic swirling inside of him plunged into the ground, just like it always did. The body pushed out of the earth, just like normal. In fact, everything went off without a hitch. The problem was how strong, how _good_ he felt when he used his magic. Until that moment, he hadn’t really noticed a difference in his power, but his teacher had warned him his necromancy would get stronger over time. He was pretty sure the boost from Seungcheol’s bond with Jeonghan was affecting his magic, too.

Everything was easy, so easy that he hardly used any power at all, and after his client left the cemetery he had to fight off the urge to put his hands above the earth and pour every ounce of his magic into the ground. He knew, like a whisper through his mind, that he was strong enough to raise the entire cemetery. He could, if he wanted to. He could have an entire army of the dead at his call.

It was as scary as it was thrilling. He ended up walking into the woods, far enough from the cemetery that the moon was blocked out overhead and he couldn’t hear the sounds of traffic. He put his hands above the earth and poured his magic out in a circle as tightly controlled as he could make it.

Various animals crawled out of the ground around him, from squirrels to birds and even a deer, white chest stained dark with blood. They paid him no mind, scampering around and through the trees like they’d never been dead at all.

He sat there for a long time, thinking about what all this new power might mean for him, for Seungcheol, even for Jeonghan. It flowed through him, cool and gentle. He wondered if his necromancy was something he could really control, or if there was a reason people like him had been hunted and killed for centuries.

 

 

 

\----

 

 

 

 

A month after Taeyong left town, Wonwoo found a small velvet bag on his doorstep. He picked it up and a shiver wracked him from the base of his spine to the top of his head. He knew even before he opened it that it was from Taeil.

When he brought it inside and opened it, he found a few crystals, a sachet of herbs and a folded piece of green paper.

_Put these in any window that faces east. They’ll give your home some extra protection._

He set the herbs and crystals in a little line across his living room window, and he felt a strange sense of calm when it was done.

Wonwoo still wasn’t sure what to make of Taeil. He was fascinated by the man, but he was also a little scared of him.

He felt deep in his chest that Taeil had good intentions, but he was still wary. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to take Taeil up on his offer to teach him about magic. Honestly, he was scared of what would happen if their magic mixed again, of what adding a different kind of magic to his arsenal would mean for his already powerful necromancy.

Wonwoo wasn’t ready for the things they could do together.

Sometimes, even when he wasn’t working, Wonwoo would feel that tug, that little voice in the back of his mind that told him he had the power to do anything. It was like his power was always just beneath his skin these days, like he could unleash it even outside of the cemetery, even without a salt circle.

Maybe he could even use it on —

He wasn’t ready to think about that possibility yet. He didn’t want to live up to the legends. Enough people in Wonwoo’s life had called him a monster. He didn’t want to prove them right in such a concrete way.

Besides, there weren’t any enemy vampires to test it on, and he would never ask Seungcheol or Jun to do something like that.

What if something else happened that he couldn’t take back?

Wonwoo wanted to get stronger, wanted to protect all the people in his life, but until he had a better grasp of his necromancy Taeil would just have to wait.

Maybe someday it would be different, but for now, his gun and his fists would have to be enough.

 

 

 

\----

 

 

 

 

The first time Wonwoo said it, Jun dropped the coffee he’d been carrying to Wonwoo’s waiting hands to the floor, the sound of the cup shattering too loud in the silence that followed.

“Wh- _what_ _did you say_?”

Jun sounded breathless, his pupils blown as he took a hesitant step toward Wonwoo. Wonwoo’s heart was hammering against his chest. He took a breath and looked Jun in the eyes.

“I love you.”

Jun was kneeling in front of him on the couch in the time it took him to blink.

“ _Xiao yòu_ , say it again.”

Wonwoo felt heat spread through his body, and he slid his hands behind Jun’s neck and kissed him breathlessly.

“I love you, Wen Junhui. I want to be your boyfriend,” he said against Jun’s lips, “I can say it in Mandarin too, if you want. I had Minghao teach me.”

Jun pulled Wonwoo off the couch and into his lap, holding him so tight against his chest that their ribs pressed together a little painfully. Jun buried his face in his shoulder and rubbed little circles on his back. When he finally looked up, he was grinning, his eyes bright and warm.

“I love you too, _qīn ài de_. Jeon Wonwoo. I have been hoping that you would say it,” he said softly, pressing their foreheads together, “I was falling for such a long time. I knew you would catch me in the end.”

Wonwoo sighed against him, warm and full of sickly sweet love.

 

 

 

\----

 

 

 

 

Wonwoo wasn’t surprised when Seungcheol said it. He was more surprised that it hadn’t happened sooner.

“Let’s move in together.”

Wonwoo leaned into Seungcheol’s side.

“We already live together. When’s the last time you even slept in your apartment?”

“No,” Seungcheol frowned and pressed closer until they were connected from hip to shoulder. “I mean, let’s get a place _together_. We can move closer to Junhui, too. It’s such a hassle driving all the way downtown, don’t you think?”

Wonwoo felt something hot shoot across their bond and he fought back a shiver.

Seungcheol smirked, and Wonwoo was keenly aware that the vampire knew exactly what he was thinking. “Give it six months. We’ll sign a six month lease, and we’ll see how it goes from there.”

Seungcheol pulled him into a kiss, his tongue swiping across Wonwoo’s bottom lip before he pulled away. He hopped off the couch and padded toward the bedroom.

He turned back to look at Wonwoo, his eyes simmering with heat.

“I think we need a bigger bed, and it definitely won’t fit in here.”

  
  


 

 

\----

  
  


 

 

It was a few weeks after Seungcheol brought up moving in together that Wonwoo worked up the courage to ask Jun.

“I wanted to talk to you about something.”

Jun settled more firmly against Wonwoo’s side on the couch.

“Have you finally come up with an answer to getting marked, _qīn ài de_?”

Jun was always frustratingly perceptive, like he was connected to Wonwoo and could see inside his head even though he wasn’t.

“I want the three of us to be together without magic first,” Wonwoo started but had to stop and take a breath, his eyes locked on Jun’s fingers playing with the hem of his sweater. “Magic makes things weird and I don’t want this to be weird.”

Jun’s hands moved from the hem of his sweater and slid down over his thighs. When Wonwoo looked at his face his eyes were dark with heat.

“Do you think that after you are marked it won’t happen again, _qīn ài de_?” Jun asked as he inched his hands higher. Wonwoo shivered. “I cannot say that Seungcheol and I will have anything more than a physical relationship, but it will not be either of us that keeps this from happening again.”

Jun kissed his way up Wonwoo’s neck, and by the time their lips met again Wonwoo was aching with want.

“After?” Wonwoo panted out, ignoring the way Jun’s lips moved to his neck. “What makes you so sure I’m going to say yes?”

He could feel Jun’s smirk against his skin.

“Two reasons. The first is that you would not have asked this way if you were not going to say yes,” Jun murmured, kissing a line back up to his lips. “The second is that I understand the desire you have to keep the people you love safe. I understand better than anyone, and even though you do not say it out loud I know that it is always something you think about.”

Jun kissed him again, hot and urgent and Wonwoo shivered against him. When he pulled back Jun met his eyes with a smirk.

“Soon, my love, I will give you everything.”

 

 

 

 

\----

 

 

 

 

Sometimes, Wonwoo had nightmares. Not about the graveyard. That only happened sometimes. And not about JR’s knife ripping into his shoulder or the feeling of his tongue sliding against his neck. Those didn’t happen often either.

No, these nightmares started with Seungcheol’s lip dripping blood against a sink, the way his eyes dulled as he stared at himself in the dirty bathroom mirror. The dream would fade into Wonwoo eating breakfast in his parents’ kitchen. The food on his plate changed into a cardinal, dead of course, wing stuck out awkward and broken before it stood and sang. Except that instead of noise, little blue pills poured out of the bird’s mouth and clattered all over his plate and the table. His mom turned toward the noise and in his rush to cover the scene his plate fell off the table and shattered on the pristine white tiles. She strode to him, her face hard like normal, but something was off somehow.

Her mouth opened and her teeth were black, then her eyes were black, and instead of saying _clean it up_ and smacking him across the face like she would have done in real life she just screamed and screamed and screamed.

He covered his ears against the noise and when he looked up, he was in Seokmin’s office. Seokmin was striding toward him but his eyes were black and his mouth was twisted into a grimace like his skin was pulled too tight over his face and he leveled his sightless eyes at Wonwoo and said _Monster Monster Monster_ until Wonwoo finally woke up in a cold sweat, his hands clenched so tight in the sheets they were white.

He knew what the nightmares were about.

The offer to become marked hadn’t helped matters. Even though he’d be the same until he got the fourth mark, a part of him still felt that he’d be giving up some essential part of himself that he’d never be able to get back. Some days, he clung to it. He might be a lot of things, a magic user and a necromancer, but at least he was human. On bad days, when Seokmin’s detectives called him every version of monster and vampire fucker that they could think of, he was pretty sure being human was actually the worst thing he could be.

It was a question that haunted him, and he worked harder than ever at maintaining his shields so that Seungcheol didn’t have to see what he was dreaming. It would take time, but it was something he really needed to do himself.

It was a thought that he couldn’t shake and a question he didn’t have an answer to, at least not yet.

Doing anything for the people he loved. Using the powers he was born with, the magic available to him to become stronger.

Was he really any less human for it?

Was it better to outmonster the monsters or to be quietly devoured?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We've got a nickname upgrade ;~; So 亲爱的 (qīn ài de) means beloved, dear, darling, etc. 
> 
>  
> 
> It might take a while (because I do want to write some other things and I'm also working a lot more these days), but I promise that I'm far from finished with this universe. If LKH can write literally 26 books I think I can come up with a few more things for our favorite necromancer to do ;) 
> 
> As for what's next, please anticipate my upcoming fics for the 97 at the Disco fest which will drop June 24th <3 
> 
> Finishing a fic is always bittersweet and I feel like there's so much more I want to say, but I guess I'll end with Thank You once again <3333

**Author's Note:**

> [Twitter](http://www.twitter.com/tsukkitaeil) // [Curious Cat](https://curiouscat.me/tsukkitaeil)
> 
>  
> 
> [Fic Playlist](https://open.spotify.com/user/dxfghibw2bty15xk9vwrsnyv8/playlist/53SaHLZhaeGE5xmueoASoB?si=mhEvJVDLSoSAPsd-WDVkrw)


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